■-%(?, '.ii^''. 



The Cambridge Series 

for 
Schools and Training Colleges 



DOMESTIC ECONOMY 



IN 



THEORY AND PRACTICE 



Eontion: C. J. CLAY and SONS, 

CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS WAREHOUSE, 

AVE MARIA LANE. 

50, WELLINGTON STREET. 




Heipjtg: F. A. BROCKHAUS. 
i^efaj gorfe: THE MACMILLAN COMPANY. 
« ISombaH: E. SEYMOUR HALE. 



[Al/ Rights reserved.'] 



DOMESTIC ECONOMY 

IN 

THEORY AND PRACTICE 

A TEXT-BOOK FOR TEACHERS AND 
STUDENTS IN TRAINING 



BY 

MARION GREENWOOD BIDDER 

LATELY STAFF LECTURER OF NEWNHAM COLLEGE, AND LECTURER 
OF GIRTON COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE, 

AND 

FLORENCE BADDELEY 

ORGANISING SECRETARY OF THE GLOUCESTERSHIRE SCHOOL OF 
COOKERY- AND DOMESTIC ECONOMY. 









CAMBRIDGE: 
AT THE UNIVERSITY PRESS. 

1901 









Cambridge : 

PRINTED BY J. AND C. F. CLAY, 
AT THE UNIVERSITY PRESS. 



' «• ■•-••< 



PREFATORY NOTE. 



This volume is intended for students in training to 
become Teachers of Domestic Science Subjects. It is 
an effort to combine truly scientific knowledge with 
practical experience, so that both may have their due 
proportion in the training of Teachers of Cookery, 
Laundry- work, Housewifery and other domestic arts. 
On the one hand we desire an accurate scientific treat- 
ment of such elementary science as is required in this 
training, on the other a practical knowledge of these 
subjects, and of the methods by which they can make 
their human appeal to those who wish to learn them. 

It is a discredit that Teachers should expound 
theories which they hold unintelligently, or which are 
scientifically incorrect ; it is not less essential that the 
art taught should be practised with skill, and with the 
beauty of complete success. A dominant question, there- 
fore, for those responsible for the training of Teachers 
in Domestic Science is how to give their due proportion 
to theory and to practice in this training. 

It is the experience of all of us that where the 
aptitude for science is strong, the skill in practice is 
not seldom weak, and vice versa. But the Teacher is 
bound to reject such a divorce of method from the 



vi Prefatory Note. 

knowledge which alone makes it elastic and efficient. 
We hope that the volume now published exhibits 
science and practice in their due relation to each 
other. Those who are interested in this education will 
recognise that the scientific portion of the book comes 
from the pen of an author who has lived in the clear 
atmosphere of scientific truth, whilst the practical 
portion is eminently imbued with the knowledge both 
of Domestic Economy as a practical art and of the 
methods of teaching it. 

Apart from the claims that the present work has 
to the favourable attention of those responsible for 
the direction of the organised teaching of Domestic 
Economy, the general public may be brought by the 
perusal of this volume to a larger knowledge of the 
importance of this education for their daughters, not 
only from a utilitarian point of view, but also as 
valuable training in powers of observation, in drawing 
out individual energies, and in other essential mental 
and moral qualities. 

MARY E. PLAYNE, 
President of the National Union for the Technical 
Ediicatioii of Women in Domestic Science. 

Jtme 1 90 1 



The General Editor desires to acknowledge his obligations to 
James Medi.and, Esq., Architect to the Gloucestershire County 
Council, to A. P. I. Cotterell, Esq., F.S.I. , and to Messrs 
ASHWELL and Nesbitt for contribution of various plans and 
sections. 



Introduction 



CONTENTS. 
PART I. 

THEORETICAL. 
By MARION GREENWOOD BIDDER. 



CHAPTER I. 

PAGE 
I 



CHAPTER II. 
Bacteria and Housewifery ^ 

CHAPTER III. 
Air in relation to Life 21 

CHAPTER IV. 
Ventilation -37 

CHAPTER V. 
Water in relation to Life 45 

CHAPTER VI. 
Foodstuffs 65 

CHAPTER VII. 
The Constituents of Food ....,,., 80 



viii Contents. 

CHAPTER ^'III. 

PAGE 

The Preparation and Cooking of Food 126 

CHAPTER IX. 
Clothing 149 



PART 11. 

THE PRACTICE AND TEACHING OF DOMESTIC 
ECONOMY. 

By FLORENCE BADDELEY. 



CHAPTER X. 

Housewifery : Hygiene in the House, Practical Housekeeping and 

Laundry Work 163 



CHAPTER XL 
Foods . • . . . . . . . . . .229 

CHAPTER Xn. 

The Teaching of Domestic Economy 278 

Notes of Lessons 286 

Appendix 327 

Index 343 



PART I 

THEORETICAL 
By MARION GREENWOOD BIDDER. 



NOTE ON THERMOMETRIC SCALES. 



The use of the Centigrade Thermometer is at present so wide- 
spread that the following equivalent temperatures should be ready 
in the mind of students of any science : 

o° C. = 32° F. Freezing point of water. 

15° C. = 59° F. " Ordinary temperature." 

36°-9 C.= 98°-4 F. Temperature of the healthy human body. 

40° C. =104° F. Temperature of severe fever. 

50° C. =122° F. Destructive to almost all life except that 

of spores. 
70° C. =158° F. 

100° C. =212° F. Boiling point of water. 



PART I. 



CHAPTER I. 

Introduction. 

Domestic Economy may perhaps be translated into 
English as '"'' the ordering of a House which is a Honie.^'' It is 
a wide subject, and its limits are not very well defined. It 
may be urged with some justice that, in the ordering of a 
House which is a Home, the moral, intellectual, and social 
sides of life are of high importance and must be reckoned with ; 
and yet, Domestic Economy, as generally understood, concerns 
itself with these quite indirectly ; it deals, directly, almost 
wholly with the physical elements of man's life. 

It is in this narrower sense that the words are interpreted 
in the chapters of this book : we speak of the food which man 
eats, of the air he breathes, the water he drinks, the clothes he 
wears ; somewhat of the fabric in which he dwells. The third 
part of the volume stands somewhat apart ; it deals with the 
Teaching of Domestic Economy, and consists chiefly of 
Notes of Lessons actually given on the main divisions of the 
subject. In the second part of the volume — the Practical 
Section — stress is laid upon the procedure which has been 
found good in these departments of Domestic Economy \ in 
the first part of the volume — the Theoretical Section — 
some attempt is made to show that the procedure is not 



2 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

solely empiric, — that there are certain established facts of the 
physical sciences with which it is in accord. So that while the 
second part will tell, as clearly as may be, how the house is to 
be ordered, the first part will endeavour to show why that 
ordering is good. 

Thus : — the problems of Ventilation centre round the 
chemistry of air and the physiology of breathing, the right 
choice and preparation of Food are determined largely by the 
chemical characters of food-stuffs and the facts of human 
digestion ; while the habits and life-history of disease-pro- 
ducing organisms offer strong reason for most stringent rules 
of Sanitation and personal cleanliness. It is true that the 
aesthetic instincts often guide the choice of clothing, and of 
the dwelling, but they are not unerring guides, and we wish to 
show that, setting them aside, sound reasons may be given for 
this or that practice in the ordering of a House which is a 
Home. 

Now the great central group of facts which make these rea- 
sons valid is that group which belongs to the Physiology of 
Man ; and there can be no doubt that all teachers of Domestic 
Economy should be students of Physiology, since it is that 
science which studies and endeavours to explain the physical 
phenomena of life. But no student of physiology is properly 
equipped for his study without at least a rudimentary know- 
ledge of chemistry and physics. For these sciences deal with 
the properties and behaviour of the substances which make up 
the material universe, and of these substances living substance 
is one, although the most complex, the least stable, the hardest 
to examine; and its relations with other substances, and with 
its own constituents, are determined by physical laws. 

The reader who wishes then to draw all that can be drawn 
from such discussion of the problems of Domestic Economy as 
is presented here, should come to its consideration armed with, 
at least, some slight knowledge of Physiology. The equip- 
ment cannot be provided in this book, but belongs to special 



CHAP. I.] Introduction. 3 

treatises on that wide and ever-growing subject. But what we 
may try to do briefly in this introduction is to lay stress on one 
part of physiological teaching which is often neglected in the 
elementary text-books — or rather by the students of elementary 
text-books — and which is yet second in importance to none, 
whether for our purposes, or for the pure study of physiology. 
This is the teaching concerning the place of the Nervous 
System in man's life. Let us consider, a little, of what 
importance this is. 

When we speak of Living Substance, we mean substance of 
complex chemical constitution which is unlike all other sub- 
stances in the chemical activity it displays. It is continually 
breaking down and repairing its own mass, carrying on 
processes which, for the most part, can be imitated in no 
Laboratory. And any portion of living substance which has 
a separate, individual existence we call an Organism. Thus 
" organism " is the most general term for a living creature ; it 
may be a man, a monkey, or a forest-tree ; it may be almost 
without permanent structure, like the simple Amoeba, it may 
be so small that (like a laj^ge bacterium) several hundred 
million would be needed to fill an average cigarette. All these 
organisms have living substance as their foundation, and have 
separate lives; they build up this substance from food which is 
not living: they all have living creatures as offspring. But 
with this fundamental likeness, organisms exhibit also pro- 
found difference. We have just said that the Amoeba is 
almost without permanent structure, that is to say that if we 
were to break it up we should find the parts much alike': any 
part of its exterior shrinks from the disturbance we call a 
stimulus ; any part of its interior can pour forth digestive 
fluid ; at any point a finger-like process or pseudopodium 
can be put out. But were an organism like a man to be 
shaped by aggregation of amoebae, with the properties of 
the simple amoeba unmodified, we can hardly imagine any 
^ We may leave out of account for the moment the cell-nucleus. 



4 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

gain in general activity, or indeed anything but hindrance as 
a consequence of the bulky multiplication. The body of 
man is an aggregation of units, but not of organisms; the 
units are minute portions of living matter which are for 
convenience termed cells, and they do not lead separate, in- 
dividual lives, but are bound together into tissues (muscular, 
nervous, epithelial), and these are shaped into organs, such as 
the foot, the eye, the heart. The cells of any one tissue are 
like each other, and they do the same work, but they are 
unlike the cells of all other tissues and the work they do is 
different ;— briefly, the body of man shows physiological division 
of labour. Thus -.—protective cells (the external epithelia), cover 
the surfaces of the body : it is by the action of muscular cells 
that the body and its parts are moved : the cells of the ali- 
mentary canal form digestive fluids, and pour them on food 
that has been eaten : the cells of the kidney take from the 
body certain waste matters which are to be cast away. And 
as each tissue excels in one department of physiological work, 
there are others in which it is inactive : the epithelial cells do 
not contract ; the digestive cells do not support (as do cartilage 
and bone) ; the kidney cells do not digest. Thus it becomes 
of the first importance that these tissues of varying activity 
should have a common bond. This bond exists and is two- 
fold : it is in the first place the bond of a common nutrition 
made possible by the vascular system {heart, blood-vessels, 
lymph-vessels) ; and in the second place it is a bond of govern- 
ment, the government of the nervous system. The blood, 
charged with oxygen in the vessels of the lungs, enriched by 
the products of digestion in the capillaries of the intestine, 
freed from waste matters in the vessels of the lungs, the skin, 
the kidneys, acts (with the lymph) at once as nurse and 
scavenger of the tissues ; each tissue draws upon the blood 
and lymph for food materials ; each yields to the blood and 
lymph its own waste. 

The nervous system is, like all other tissues, fed by the 



CHAP. I.] Litroductioii. 5 

blood and drained by the blood, but it may be called the 
master tissue of the body. By its special activity the 
activities of all the other tissues are controlled ; there is no 
part of the body into which its ramifications do not spread ; 
we could not find two regions which may not be brought 
into physiological relations by means of these ramifications. 
For the nervous tissue of the body is in part peripheral^ — 
present in every organ and interpenetrating every tissue, — 
and in part it is central; there is a great central mass of 
nervous matter to which all the peripheral nervous matter leads 
or from which it radiates. To unravel the complexities of 
even one part of this orderly, nervous tangle may be the work 
of a life-time ; here we cannot even give a brief description of 
the whole. We will leave aside all distinction of nerve-cells 
and nerve-fibres ; we will lay no stress even on the relation- 
ships of brain, spinal bulb and spinal cord. We will only 
remember these important divisions of nervous matter : first, 
central nervous-tissue ; second, tissue which bears messages 
or impulses to the centre and is called afferent ; and third, 
tissue which, conversely, bears impulses away from the centre^ 
and is called efferent. It is the office of the central tissue to 
receive afferent impulses, to discharge efferent impulses, to 
correlate the one with the other, and to check efferent impulses 
which might give rise to harmful action. In chapter vii. and 
chapter viii. §§ 56, 60, we discuss some examples of the ordered 
action which is the result of this ceaseless activity of restraint 
and excitation, and all the events of healthy life furnish illustra- 
tions. From the closure of an eyelid to the hardest gymnastic 
exercises, there is no " voluntary " bodily movement which is 
not set up and guided by nervous impulse : there cannot be an 
important change of posture which is not accompanied by 
some adjustment of the blood-vessels of the body, some change 
of heart-beat, some widening or narrowing of arteries, and it is 
the nervous system which brings about these changes. 
And there is good evidence that it is nervous impulse which 



6 Domes tic Economy. [PT. I. 

causes the gland-cells to build up their own substance, and, 
again, to pour out the secretions whereby digestion is effected, 
or waste matter is cast out from the body. On the other hand 
every sensation — -not only of sight, sound or smell, but of heat, 
cold, touch, or pain — is inseparable from nervous impulse. 
Thus when we gasp at the touch of a cold shower-bath, or 
flush in the heat and movement of a ball-room ; when the 
mouth " waters " at the sight of food, or some smell, or taste, 
sets up nausea or vomiting ; then it is the central nervous 
tissue w^hich, excited by afferent impulses reaching it from the 
periphery, discharges the efferent impulses which move the 
muscles of breathing, which widen the arterioles of the skin, 
which excite the secreting cells of the salivary glands, and 
the muscles of the abdomen and stomach-walls. And ac- 
companying these nervous actions (which are fairly easy to 
observe) are others, more subtle, less obvious, but as important 
to the welfare of the body : among such are the efferent 
impulses which guide the nourishment— w^e may say the self- 
support — of the tissues, so that gland-cells, muscle-cells, and 
the like, remain healthy and vigorous. And among them too 
are those afferent impulses which stream from the periphery, to 
register, in the central nervous tissue, all muscular contraction. 
This is not the place, and not the moment, to discuss these 
subtleties of nervous action, but their existence should be 
remembered in considering the physical elements of the life of 
man. Man is not to be pictured mainly as an animal who 
breathes, who possesses certain digestive powers, certain glands 
capable of excreting waste matter, a system of blood-vessels by 
means of which nourishment is gleaned from the stomach, 
while waste is carried to the kidney. He is an organism full of 
delicate adjustments ; an organism whose parts have con- 
stantly varying activities and needs ; an organism which must 
meet changing strain and stress. The tissues cannot be " set " 
at one level of action ; the muscles must contract slightly or 
strongly or must relax ; the blood-vessels must widen or narrow 



CHAP. I.] Introduction, 7 

here or there ; the glands must pour out their secretions or 
depress this activity while others of their activities are 
heightened. And it is the work of the Nervous System to 
order and control these changes, — to adjust the impulses which 
stream to it from the periphery and the impulses which it sends 
out to the periphery so that the action of the whole shall be 
harmonious and helpful. There are no facts of man's life 
which should be rather borne in mind than these, in the 
ordering of a House which is a Home. 



CHAPTER II. 

Bacteria and Housewifery. 

§ I. It is probable that during the last twenty years no 
plant or animal has been so much before the attention of man, 
as certain forms which are perhaps the simplest, and certainly 
the most minute of all plants. These are the Bacteria ; and 
we ought probably to include with them, as sharing some of 
the notice they have won, the yeasts and the moulds, — much 
larger indeed than the bacteria but still simple in structure. 

In disease, in commerce, in domestic life, the power of 
these tiny creatures becomes recognized increasingly year by 
year, and to give a brief sketch of what they are, and what they 
do, is no unfitting introduction to the study of some of the 
main problems of Domestic Economy. 

We are accustomed to divide the living beings in the world 
into Plants and Animals, and this broad distinction is based on 
differences which are very striking when we compare such an 
animal as the dog with such a plant as the geranium. There 
are differences of form, of habit-of-life, differences in many of 
the substances which are present, but above all, differences in 
the nature of food and in the mode of feeding. But further, 
plants and animals differ greatly among themselves ; thus a 
dog is clearly very unlike a herring; both these differ widely 
from a black-beetle, this again from a snail, and all of these 
from a sea anemone. And among plants a geranium stands 
far apart from a fern, and a fern from the moss or lichen which 



PT. I. CH. II.] Bacteria and Housewifery. g 

clothes a wall. Indeed, as we pass from the highest or most 
complex plants to those which are very simple, we lose that 
distinction into stem, leaf, and root which we associate con- 
stantly with the field flowers and the forest trees. In the same 
way, examining a whole series of animals, each simpler than the 
last, we find some which lack not only the nerves, muscles, and 
backbone which we cannot separate from our ideas of a dog or 
a fish, but which want also a mouth and stomach as these 
words are commonly understood. 

And yet the simple creatures which stand at the end of each 
series are truly plants and animals respectively, and truly unlike 
each other. 

We have said that bacteria must be placed among the 
plants, though among the simplest and smallest. Now the 
most characteristic feature about the life of green plafits is the 
great power possessed by them of building up the substances of 
which they are composed, from comparatively simple materials. 
This power is not possessed by animals which, being also com- 
posed of highly complex substances, feed either upon plants 
(as a sheep does) or upon other animals (as a cat does) or have 
such a mixed diet as that of most Europeans. It is true that 
the food thus taken in by animals needs important change 
before it actually nourishes the eater, such change as when the 
saliva forms soluble sugar from insoluble starch, as when the 
gastric juice turns the indififusible proteids of lean meat into 
peptone, as when the secretion of the pancreas breaks the fat 
of butter into tiny particles suitable for absorption. Neverthe- 
less, the lean meat, the starch, and the butter are in themselves 
complex bodies and, unless bodies of this description be 
available for food, an animal will starve. But green plants do 
not need proteids, fats, or carbohydrates as food^; in their 
substances all these bodies are present, but they are built 
up by the plant out of compounds so much less com- 
plex that to animals they would be useless as food. 

^ A brief account of these bodies is given below, § 23. 



lO Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

This great building-up power belongs to plants of all kinds 
provided that they hold the green colouring matter chlorophyll ; 
it is displayed by the oak, the geranium, and by the small and 
simple thread-like or one-celled plants which sometimes form 
the green scum on a stagnant pool. Now among animals 
there are certain forms which do not only need complex food, 
but need it prepared for absorption. They cannot digest, but 
live a degraded life, inseparable from some other animal which 
nourishes them. Of these we may take the Tape-worm as an 
example ; they are known as parasites. Among plants too 
there are parasites; thus the Dodder, whose twining, red, 
stems are often seen on heaths, although it is nearly related 
to the Convolvulus and to Jacob's ladder, cannot live inde- 
pendently. It has no chlorophyll, and fastens itself upon 
and feeds upon other plants which are green and can therefore 
build up the substances which it and they require. In the 
groups of simple plants (those in which stem, leaf, and root 
cannot be distinguished) those forms which have not chloro- 
phyll are known as Fungi, and the bacteria belong to the group 
of the fungi. Destitute of chlorophyll, they must have complex 
food to form their own substance, and they live either upon 
other living creatures, or upon substance which has been 
living in the recent past, or upon compounds which, although 
simpler than those which an animal needs, are much less simple 
than those which serve as the food of green plants. Indeed 
there is but little living or dead' matter upon which (unless it 
be too acid or too alkaline, too hot or too cold) bacteria of 
some sort will not thrive. What living creature, if killed, will 
not presently decay ? And decay or putrefaction is a popular 
name for one form of bacterial change. Bacteria abound in 
every human intestine, not preying upon the living epithelium 
of its walls indeed, but feeding abundantly upon the broken- 
down, digestive contents. Before the use of antiseptic dressings 

^ Dead is used here, not of inorganic bodies, but of substance which, 
having lived, now lives no longer. 



CHAP. II.] Bacteria and Housewifery. 1 1 

in surgery became usual, it was well established that a wound 
exposed to the air became the home and nursery of what we 
now know to be bacteria ; indeed it would probably be difficult 
to find air, food, or water (unless these have received special 
treatment) in which they are not present. We may ask then 
"What are bacteria like? what is the importance of their 
widespread presence?" 

§ 2. {a) In structure the bacteria are extremely simple. 
Each is a tiny mass of living matter — such a mass as 
Physiology teaches us to call a cell — having a protective, 
outside covering (or wall) of different and less complex com- 
position. Some of these individuals have no power of inde- 
pendent movement, but are carried about passively by the 
movement of the surroundings in which they live ; others 
move by means of outgrowths of their substance, — thread-like 
and exquisitely fine, — which have an action roughly comparable 
to that of the oars in a boat ; others move by snake-like 
undulation of the whole body. 

{b) In shape the bacteria are threads^ rods, spheres, dumb- 
bell-shaped, or comma-shaped \ in size they are so small that for 
satisfactory observation with the microscope they must be 
magnified 800 times or 1000 times linear. Some of the 
smaller spheres or cocci as they are called measure less than 
I microtnillimetre in diameter^ \ what is perhaps the largest 

^ A micromillimetre is the one-thousandth part of a millimetre ; a 
millimetre is '039 inch. It is not easy to give to anyone ignorant of 
microscopic work a clear picture of the size of bacteria. Let us suppose 
that we take a small form (a coccus) and a 'full-stop' in the text of this 
book and magnify them the same number of times. When we magnify 
the coccus so that it becomes the natural size of the full-stop, the full- 
stop, equally magnified, will appear a rounded patch of black, covering the 
whole of two open pages of this book. Many bacteria are larger than the 
cocci, as we have said, though still very minute ; in life they are, for the 
most part, colourless and very bright {highly refractive), so that under a 



12 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

bacterium known is 2 J micromillimetres wide and 10 micro- 
millimetres in length ; thus, although small absolutely, it would 
hold 100 of the tiny cocci just described. But the rarity of 
this large size is indicated by the name Bacillus megatherium 
which is given to the bacterium in question. 

Turning to our second question " What is the importance 
of the widespread presence of these minute creatures?" we 
may answer it somewhat as follows. The importance springs 
{a) from the rapidity and success with which bacteria multiply 
or reproduce themselves, {b) from their mode of nourishment 
and from the nature of the substances formed by them as they 
grow. 

{a) The reproduction of bacteria. 

It is clear that if we take a living being of many unlike 
parts, — for example a trout or a chicken— to split off or 
divide the whole individual or any part of it would not give 
rise to 2 new individuals, but would merely injure or maim. A 
young trout or a chicken is built up gradually as the work of 
organs of the parent specially set apart for that use, and all the 
complex parts of the perfect creature grow gradually from 
simple beginnings in the egg. 

But on the other hand if we consider a bacterium such as 
the tiny coccus mentioned above, to split the coccus completely 
is to form 2 cocci, 2 new individuals. This form of multiplica- 
tion is characteristic of bacteria and at times goes forward very 
quickly. Indeed it has been calculated that, taking for granted 
favourable conditions for this division, one bacterium, twice as 
large as a coccus (that is, the same breadth and twice the 

good microscope they are shining threads or dots. For proper exami- 
nation they must not only be highly magnified, but also stained with 
different and suitable colours, to bring out their characteristic shape, to 
distinguish their outside wall from its contents, and to show the presence 
or absence of spores (cp. below). 



CHAP. II.] Bacteria and Housewifery. 13 

length), will increase at such a rate that, in two days' time, 
2 billions of bacteria have sprung from it — enough to fill a 
^ litre flask (nearly a pint). Fortunately for man and for the 
other inhabitants of the world, external conditions are often 
unfavourable ; different bacteria destroy each other, and, when 
crowded, they are self-destructive, so that this possible increase 
is not attained. But the actual increase is very great, and this 
form of multiplication — by division or fission as it is techni- 
cally called — brings enormous numbers of bacteria rapidly into 
existence from a single specimen. 

For the second form of multiplication there is special pre- 
paratory change in the bacterium. Probably there is change 
in the little mass which forms the living part of the individual, 
certainly there is change in the surrounding envelope or wall. 
And the change is of such a nature that t/te altered form is 
much ?nore difficult to kill. Among bacteria w^hich have not 
undergone this special change there is great difference in the 
ease with which they can be killed. But we know, on the 
whole, that very great cold and more especially great heat do 
injure them beyond repair; that drying, shaking, the passage 
of electric currents, light, and, above all, sunlight are hurtful or 
fatal to them. When however they are changed in the fashion 
indicated above they can resist much more successfully these 
ordinarily harmful conditions. The changed bacteria are 
known as spores, and it has been shown that some spores^ 
dried for 7nore than three years, can grow if moistened again, 
and that a certain bacterium destroyed by a twenty minutes' 
exposure to boiling water has spores which are not destroyed at 
the same temperature under 3 hours. It is these two characters 
which give to spores their special power and danger when it is 
a question of destroying bacteria : heating and drying, which 
would cripple the fully grown forms, do not destroy the life of 
the spores. Added to this, the spores although varying in size 
are, for the most part, smaller than the bacteria to which 
they respectively belong, and, when dry, float readily, — or to be 



14 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

accurate sink very slowly — when by any means they are cast 
into the air\ 

It may be asked " How is the vitality or life of spores 
shown?" It is shown by changes which may be (quite roughly) 
compared with the germination of a seed. As a seed which 
has been apparently unchanged through a long period of 
drought gives rise, when suitably moistened, warmed, and 
nourished, to a young plant, so the tiny spores, when suitably 
nourished, germinate, and from them arise bacteria with all 
their great and characteristic power of quick multiplication by 
fission. 

(^) The nourishment of tjacteria arid the nature of the 
substances for 7ned by them in groivth. 

The phrase '' when suitably nourished " leads us to dwell 
for a time upon the second reason given for regarding bacteria 
as of high importance to the life of the world. And in this 
respect they are mighty for evil and for good. 

§ 3. TJie power for good is often overlooked in popular 
thought and writing, but if we merely enumerate certain of 
the processes which are dependent on the activity of bacteria, 
we see it clearly. 

In commerce the preparation oi flax and hemp from the 
plants which produce them, the preparation of skins before 
tanning, the preparation of tobacco leaves before the tobacco 
we know is made,^ — these and others are processes in which 
bacterial activity is all important. Different forms are of 
course concerned in the different processes, but all bacteria 
have this in common, that they live upon liquid food 
and that they have most remarkable, though various, 
powers of breaking down complex matter outside 
themselves, in which action they obtain the nutritive 
liquid wherewithal to thrive and divide. At the same 
time they bring about other profound changes. 

^ A discussion of the conditions under which solid particles are found 
abundantly in the air is given below, § lo. 



CHAP. II.] Bacteria and Housewifery. 15 

In agriculture we find bacteria active in all successful 
making of hay ; and we find them enormously important in so 
altering the substances in soil that the crops grown can be well 
nourished. This activity is shown both in connection with the 
history of gaseous nitrogen and compounds of nitrogen in the 
soil and in connection with cast-off cellulose. Cellulose, 
as we know, is the non-nitrogenous substance of which the 
walls of plant cells are made and it is extremely difficult to 
dissolve : saliva, gastric juice, and pancreatic juice are alike 
without action — they can only pass through the cellulose 
envelope and attack the nitrogenous, starchy, or fatty, bodies 
lying within. Yet bacteria can dissolve it and even more 
resistent wood, and all the fallen leaves and twigs which " rot " 
upon the ground are being changed by the agency of 
these minute creatures into substances which, being 
set free into the air and the soil, are at the service 
of other plants and of animals. 

In domestic life we find familiar examples of the 
activity of bacteria in changes which go on in milk, cheese, 
butter. In brewing, and in the formation of vinegar, they take 
active part, and it must not be forgotten that one of the yeasts 
(we shall speak later of these near neighbours of bacteria) is of 
daily use in bread-making. In fresh milk bacteria are always 
present, but they may be regarded as an unmixed evil'. In 
butter they abound, either carried on from the sour cream, 
or added deliberately after being separately cultivated : indeed 
butter is said to owe its delicate flavour to them. Cheese 
is always teeming with bacteria, and they have a most 
important share in changing the insipid " curd " to the highly 
flavoured, ripe cheese which we know. 

Such bacteria may be regarded as working for good be- 
cause on the one hand they bring about important changes 

^ This is the case even when the bacteria present are not disease- 
prodticiiig. 



1 6 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

useful to man and because on the other hand they are not 
sources of disease when introduced into the human body ; 
they belong to what are technically called the non-patho- 
genic bacteria. 

But the poiver for evil of certain other forms can hardly be 
overestimated. These forms are the pathogenic (or disease- 
producing) bacteria : they are a minority when the whole group 
of the Bacteria is looked at from the point of view of numbers, 
but when we consider their effects it is hardly surprising that, 
to the popular imagination, they have thrown into the shade 
the beneficial action of some non-pathogenic forms. As one 
infectious disease after another has been carefully investigated 
in recent years, each has shown that bacteria are present in the 
blood and in various organs of the sufferer, and that the 
bacteria vary characteristically with the disease. Diphtheria^ 
scarlet fever, typhoid fever, cholera, wool-sorter^ s disease, con- 
sufnption, tetanus ("lockjaw"), leprosy, small-pox, — these are 
only some of the diseases in which bacteria are growing 
within the living body, infesting its parts and, with the 
products of their activity, lessening its vitality. And the 
issue of the struggle is recovery or death, — recovery if the 
bacteria and the substances which they form can be gradually 
destroyed by certain processes which each healthy body has 
at its command ; — death if these processes fail (and we know 
how often this is the case), and the vitality of the diseased 
person is not only lessened but destroyed. 

§ 4. Now the disease-producing bacteria concern us here, 
because it is within the power of a housekeeper to aid or check 
their spread in a house, or even their admission to it. This is 
seen clearly if we name some of the points of danger in the 
attack of these small enemies and some of the methods of 
defence which may be used. 

A. How may pathogetiic bacteria enter or spread in a house? 

a. They may enter with someone who suffers from an 



CHAP. II.] Bacteria and Hotisezvifery. ly 

infectious disease or with some article of furniture, dress, 
or ornament from an infected house. 

They may spread from all excreta of the patient, from 
clothes soiled by him, rooms inhabited by him, utensils of 
food, or books used by him, especially in those diseases in 
which there is ''peeling" of the skin. 

b. They may enter with water and spread with the 
drinking of it. Water is a fruitful source of bacterial infection, 
and pollution of the water-supply of some towns has been 
associated with grave epidemics of typhoid fever, cholera, &c. 

c. They may enter with milk and spread with its use. 
Tuberculous cows and goats are only too familiar as sources of 
diseased milk which may convey tuberculosis (consumption) to 
a child or to another animal, and milk, contaminated after it 
has left the cow, often carries typhus bacteria, and has been 
known to carry those of scarlet fever. 

d. They may enter with meat. Probably all meat which 
has been "hung" contains bacteria of some kind, — on its 
surface — or beneath the surface, if the interval since death 
has been long. But there is some meat, taken from 
unhealthy oxen or calves, in which a bacterium is 
present, which has been shown (with its products) to 
give rise to the marked and sometimes fatal symptoms 
which accompany meat-poisoning in man. "Unsound 
meat " is probably sometimes used carelessly or culpably in the 
making of meat pies, but the pathogenic bacterium may be 
present without giving rise to any suspicious change in the 
smell, colour or texture of the poisoned meat, and then the 
danger is most insidious. 

e. They may be introduced by domestic animals. This is 
not a well-recognized source of infection, indeed it is perhaps 
too lightly regarded. The domestic reticence of cats is a 
safeguard in their case, but a dog is as indiscriminatingly 
enquiring abroad (even among refuse) as he is effusively 

B. 2 



1 8 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

affectionate at home. And these habits, which probably do 
make him a carrier of higher animal parasites, may well aid, 
sometimes, in the transference of pathogenic bacteria. 

B. We turn then to ask what methods of defence ca?i be 
opposed to these subtle attacks ? 

a. A general answer is found in naming some of the con- 
ditions which are hurtful to the life of bacteria. Foremost 
among these we must place the substances known as anti- 
septics. Corrosive sublimate^ chloride of lii7ie^ sulphurous 
acid, more lately boracic acid, and formalin have grown familiar 
terms. In different degrees they act harmfully, some when 
present in very minute amount. But it must be remembered 
that, injuring bacteria, they also injure all living things, so that 
while their use is wholly for good in the sick-room, they should 
never be used in the kitchen. 

b. Hardly less important than the use of antiseptics is the 
process of sterilization. To make a fluid, or solid, sterile is 
to destroy all liviftg creatures i7i it, and this is the great 
safeguard of the kitchen and the nursery. Raised to 
a sufficiently high temperature in the dry, or wet, all food and 
drink is sterile. Now a high temperature is often hurtful to the 
nutritive matter in food, but sterilization may be brought about 
either by a short stay at a high temperature, or a longer stay at 
a lower temperature, or by repeated treatment with moderate 
heat (say 50° C.). Boiling is of course the rough, domestic 
form of steriHzing, though all forms of cooking, properly 
carried out, should rank with boiling. The effect of cold (as 
it can be applied in the kitchen) is not to sterilize. It does 
however check the development of bacteria and is therefore of 
great value. 

c. A most important aid to the destruction of bacteria is 
found in the dayUght, and especially in bright sunlight, 
and it is of great interest that the pathogenic bacteria are, on 



CHAP. II.] Bacteria and Housewifery. 19 

the whole, most hurt by the sun. It has been found that 
when many thousands of a form of bacterium which is con- 
stantly present in the human intestine are added to water 
(100,000 bacteria to i c.c. of water), 710 living specimens could 
be found after one hour's sunlight, and equally marked destruc- 
tion of the bacteria which belong to typhus, to anthrax, to 
asiatic cholera, has been observed. Thus it is clear that the 
policy of darkening dwelling-rooms is short-sighted in the 
extreme, and that the evils of "fading" carpets and curtains 
are not to be compared with the evils of fostering the growth 
of bacteria by shutting out the sunlight. 

d. Lastly we must note that the human body, so disastrously 
fitted to be a home to pathogenic bacteria, may be made 
unsuitable for this purpose, or, in technical words, immune, by 
inoculation. This immunity, varying in completeness and 
in duration, is of course a thing not of the kitchen but of the 
surgery ; yet it cannot be unnamed, for it is a powerful weapon 
in the war with bacteria. 

This brief statement is substantially an answer to the 
general question which went before it. Each point will be 
taken up in detail in the following pages, as that part of the 
subject is considered with which it is closely connected. And, 
if asked how briefly to arm a thoughtful housekeeper against 
the dangers of bacterial action, we can only say that, while no 
procedure will hedge about a household in complete security, 
she is well armed in observing, 

1. in the sick-room, rigid cleanliness with use of antiseptics ; 

2. /// the larder, cleanliness zvith a temperature as low as 

may be ; 

3. in the kitchen, intelligent and above all thorough 

cooking ; 

4. throughout the dwelli?ig-house, the admission of sunshine 

and fresh air. 



20 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

The extinction of non-pathogenic bacteria in the field and in 
commerce would be a measureless disaster, but in the kitchen 
their use is at an end, and they may be ruthlessly destroyed, — 
lest, by chance, side by side with them there grow the 
pathogenic forms ^ 

§ 5. It may perhaps seem strange that in the foregoing 
paragraphs mere mention has been made of the yeasts and 
moii/ds. Like bacteria they are simple plants, though differing 
from bacteria and from each other in minute points of struc- 
ture ; like bacteria they are fungi, and exist on living or dead 
substance, breaking it down and changing it profoundly. But 
in the first place with rare exceptions they are non-pathogenic, 
in the second place they are less insidious in attack. Unsound 
meat, tuberculous milk, poisoned water do not necessarily 
show anything of their bacterial contents, but mouldy eatables 
are soon rejected in disgust. Briefly, we may say that, aiming 
at bacteria, the housewife kills moulds and yeasts as well. 



1 In this brief account much that is important from a scientific aspect, 
has been omitted ; the actions of bacteria in nitrification, in fixing free 
nitrogen, in breaking up and using carbonic acid in the absence of 
sunlight ; — these are of the highest interest. It seemed well however to 
make a deliberate choice of such activities as mainly affect domestic life. 
It may be mentioned with regard to the familiar terms micro-organism and 
microbe that the latter is practically a popular equivalent for bacterium, 
while micro-organisms include not only bacteria, but yeasts and moulds, 
and certain very simple animals, microscopic members of the group 
Protozoa. The term micro-organis?n is indeed one which lays stress on the 
likeness among these minute forms (since all are living), rather than on 
the differences which make us group some with animals, some with plants ; 
and it is to be noted that recent researches have proved that certain 
diseases are due to Protozoa, almost as minute as bacteria. 



CHAP. III.] 21 



CHAPTER III. 
Air in relation to Life. 



§ 6. We may look upon the atmosphere as a sea of air, 
bathing the earth. At the bottom of this air-sea (that is upon 
the surface of the earth) the pressure of the atmosphere is in 
equilibrium with a column of mercury 760 millimetres high; it 
is therefore under such a pressure that the majority of plants 
and animals live. 

But the air which forms this sea is practically never still. 
Rising when it is warmed, and thus producing directly and 
indirectly currents of varying strength ; constantly gaining 
moisture, and as constantly losing it ; made foul and purified 
by different actions of living beings, the "open air" is like a 
chemical laboratory, the scene of varied and profound chemical 
change. It will be readily understood that profound changes 
taking place in any medium do not necessarily alter the final 
composition of that medium, provided that the different changes 
balance each other. And we find that the "open air," unless 
it is in close contact with such powerful pollution as that 
springing from thick-set chemical works, or from large masses 
of putrefying substance, has a constant composition. Taking 
account of water in the gaseous state (which is always present 



22 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

though in varying amount) we may accept the following analysis 
of air as typical : 

"Nitrogen" 78*35 parts 

Oxygen 2077 parts 

Moisture (water) 0*85 parts 

Carbonic acid gas 0-03 parts 

Air loo'oo parts. 

It must be remembered here that the "Nitrogen" does not 
now represent one indivisible substance — one element. But 
argon or the other inert gases which have lately been described 
in air do not, so far as we know at present, touch the relation 
of air to life. 

§ 7. We know from the teachings of Physiology that it is 
as a source of oxygen that air is all important to plants and 
animals, and it is in connection with this use that we must 
now consider it further. 

There are however three points that may first be noticed. 

{(i) Firstly, certain living creatures, members of that group 
of the fungi which we know as bacteria \ can exist and reproduce 
themselves in nutrient liquids which contain no oxygen. Some 
of these forms are indifferent to the presence of oxygen and can 
thrive in its presence or absence, but to others the gas acts as a 
poison, they can only live in its absence. Bacteria, important 
as the work of recent years has shown them to be, alike from 
a commercial and a medical point of view, form only one sub- 
division of that great vegetable group the fungi, and the fungi 
again form but a small part of the physical life of the world. 
Nevertheless in considering the relation of the air to life, it 
must be remembered that certain livifig creatures are entirely 
indepe7ident of it. 

(b) In the second place another group of bacteria have very 
remarkable relations with the nitrogen of the air. We know 

^ See above, chapter ii. 



CHAP. III.] Air in relation to Life. 23 

that the element nitrogen is a necessary part of all proteids and 
that proteids are a necessary part of all living substance ; but 
we also know (§ i ) that animals draw their nitrogen from the 
proteids of other animals or of plants, and that plants build 
them up from simple materials, such as nitrates found in the 
soil. But the group of bacteria of which we are now speaking, 
and they alone, can use the free nitrogen of the air and make it 
enter into chemical combination. They live in or upon the 
roots of certain plants — members of the order to which the pea, 
the lupin, the clover belong, and these plants are fed with the 
nitrogen "fixed" by the bacteria. These facts are of great 
practical importance to farmers, for crops thus fed by bacteria 
are much less dependent upon nitrogenous manuring 
than are oats, wheat, or potatoes, and may even leave 
the soil richer in this respect; they are also of the greatest 
scientific interest, since the behaviour of these bacteria to 
the inert nitrogen of the air is so unlike that of all other living 
things. 

ic) In the third place the atmosphere must be regarded as 
a source of carbonic acid to all living creatures ivhich hold 
chlorophyll — that is, all green plants and a few green animals. 
Carbonic acid is a gas which is difficult to decompose, yet 
in the presence of sunlight, protoplasm holding chlorophyll can 
decompose it, and all the carbon that is found in living 
substance (and it is a very wide-spread element — found in 
proteids, in fatty matters and in starchy matters) has once been 
present in the air in the form of carbonic acid gas. From 
this form it is taken by green plants and worked up to complex 
substances, and these substances become part of animals who 
live upon vegetable food, and thus, part of animals who are 
carnivorous. 

§ 8. It is however in relation to the act of breathing that 
we wish to consider the air in detail, and looked at from this 
point of view it becomes a great storehouse whence oxygen is 



24 



Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 



drawn and into which carbonic acid is poured. When air is cut 
off from an animal, then, as is well known, the animal dies. 
And short of this extreme state of things, changes in the sur- 
rounding air have most important effects on breathing. 

I. The pressure of the air which is breathed may 
be changed. 

Sometimes this special medical treatment is applied locally 
in the case of certain diseases of the chest; the patient is 
made to breathe air that is especially compressed, or especially 
rarefied. But with these cases we have no concern here; 
changes of pressure in the air during health are changes to 
which not only the lungs but the whole body is exposed. 

Thus the pressure may be increased as it is in the closed 
chambers in which the builders of great bridges work. In the 
chambers or "caissons" which were formed in the building of 
the Forth Bridge, air was supplied at a pressure more than three 
times as great as the pressure of the atmosphere. 

On the other hand the pressure may be decreased. As we 
rise above the surface of the earth the air is increasingly 
rarefied or "thin," and high in the Alps or Himalayas, or in 
high balloon-ascents, the difference of pressure may be very 

great. 

Now great changes in either direction may be brought 
about slowly with no ill effect. The workmen who build a 
bridge are placed in an "air lock" where the pressure is 
increased gradually, and they can then not only exist but 
work in the condensed air of the caisson. In the same way, 
passing through the air lock, they can come back to the earth 
unhurt. And men live and work in high Himalayan villages 
as easily as in London. But when the changes are extreme or 
sudden, injury, even death may follow; with increased pressure^ 
slow and deep breathing, pain in the head, sometimes breakage 
of the drum of the ear : with decreased press2ire, irritation of the 



CHAP. III.] Air in relation to Life. 25 

skin, disturbance both of movement and feeling, sometimes un- 
consciousness and death. These are probably symptoms of an 
upset in the balance between the blood and the gases 
which it holds at the normal atmospheric pressure; 
this upset, carried everywhere because the blood in which it 
takes place travels everywhere, injures the delicate, nervous 
tissue which is so wide-spread, and thus brings about wide- 
spread injury which may be even fatal. 



II. The air breathed may be more or less loaded with 
moisture or may be exceptionally cold or warm. 

In the case of healthy persons changes of this nature, unless 
they are extreme, do not touch the breathing directly. They 
have of course very important action upon the skin with its 
blood vessels and sweat glands, and it is a well-known fact 
that extremes of heat and cold are more difficult to bear 
without injury if the air be loaded with moisture than if it be 
dry. We know that, be the surroundings hot or cold, the 
temperature of a healthy warm-blooded animal hardly varies ; 
when however it is raised above the normal by some extreme 
external change or by disease, then the breathing is much 
more rapid. And what is unusual in man is usual in the dog ; 
the panting or quick breathing of a heated dog is familiar to 
everyone — it probably brings about great loss of heat by 
evaporation from the windpipe, nose, and mouth, and thus is 
an aid in cooling the animal. 

III. The composition of the air breathed may be changed., not 
by the introduction of any 7iew ele??ie7tt or constituent, but 
by change in the gases usually present, nitrogen, oxygen, 
carbonic acid. 

We may put aside the question of change in nitrogen. 
This does not occur under ordinary or even under unusual 



26 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

conditions of life, at least not in any degree which affects 
breathing. Nitrogen, indeed, is only important in respiration if 
it interferes with the proper inspiration of oxygen. 

In like manner we may put aside the question of increase 
in the oxygen present. It may be increased considerably 
without distinct effect on breathing, and we do not meet with 
this increase under natural conditions. 

But there are two possible changes which are all impor- 
tant in their effect on breathing — decrease in the 
amount of oxygen in the air and increase in the amount 
of carbonic acid. In careful experiments these two changes 
may be separated from each other, and each is found to be 
injurious and, if carried far enough, fatal ; that is, a man may 
be killed by sufficiently reducing the oxygen in the air he 
breathes, and in a somewhat different way, by greatly increasing 
the carbonic acid present. 

But practically the two changes come before us together, 
for the consumption of oxygen by all living creatures forms one 
side of the shield, while the other is the giving off of carbonic 
acid. The oxygen may be reduced considerably from the 
amount present in fresh air (20 vols, p.c.) without marked 
injury to breathing; it is the amount of carbonic acid 
present which is usually taken as the index of harmful 
change, partly because of its special ill effects, but (probably) 
even more because, under the conditions in which it is usually 
abundant, other subtle and injurious changes in the air have 
been brought about. Of these we shall speak later. 

The free air is, as we have said above, remarkably 
uniform in its composition, indeed, taking Dr Angus Smith's 
figures, we may notice that there is hardly more carbonic 
acid in the street air of a crowded city than on a mountain 
top. 



CHAP. III.] Air in relation to Life. 27 

Percentage of carbonic acid in Air. 

From the streets of London (mean)... "0343 p.c. or 3-43 

parts in 10,000. 

From the top of Ben Nevis, „ ... "0327 p.c. or 3*27 

parts in 10,000. 
This uniformity is, of course, due not only to the fact that 
activities of opposite character, tending to balance each other, 
go on in the air, but that owing to such agencies as rain and 
winds the air is in free movement \ Pure air is indeed at- 
tainable for all living creatures whose life is an out-of-doors life. 
But for the most part human life is in-doors, in limited spaces 
of air cut off more or less completely from the atmosphere. 
These are constantly fouled by carbonic acid arising from 
every human being or other animal inhabiting them, from every 
burning candle, gas-jet or lamp. Plants also give off carbonic 
acid, but not in great amount, and in the sunlight they are 
sources of oxygen. Domestic animals are by no means neg- 
ligible, but are important consumers of oxygen and producers 
of carbonic acid, — thus, in proportion to weight, a dog gives 
rise to two or three times as much carbonic acid as a man. 
But except in buildings specially devoted to them the numbers 
of domestic animals are small ; the chief sources of impurity 

^ The proportion of carbonic acid varies somewhat in different towns, 
and it is, as might be expected, higher in foggy air. In considering those 
balancing activities which keep the composition of air constant it is 
interesting to note that as regards the amount of carbonic acid present, 
there is a tendency to place too high the combined influence of plant life 
in the sunshine (consumption of carbonic acid) and animal life (evohition 
of carbonic acid). There is good evidence that this influence sinks into 
insignificance compared with chemical reactions in which life is not directly 
concerned. Carbonic acid is still emitted from the earth in enormous 
quantities by volcanoes and springs, and it is only kept from loading the 
air by constant chemical combination. Thus, instead of existing freely as 
a gas, it forms part of substances which dissolve in fresh water or in the 
sea (such as carbonate of lime) and in the long-run help to form the solid 
substance of the earth. But as regards the renewal of oxygen in the 
atmosphere, green plants are all-important. 



28 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

which we have to consider are found in man and in the 
different forms of burning. 

§ 9. A man, when he is breathing quietly, sends out at 
every breath about 500 cc. (say 30 cubic inches) of air loaded 
with carbonic acid to the extent of 4 p.c. ; a man working 
actively gives oif much more. Now the air of a room should 
ideally contain the same percentage of carbonic acid as does 
the fresh air, namely 3 "5 parts in 10,000. It is found that air 
containing more than this may, however, be breathed without 
injury or discomfort ; but when the increase due to breathing is 
more than 2 parts in 10,000, that is to say when the whole 
carbonic acid present exceeds 5 or at most 6 parts in 10,000 
(2 of those parts springing from respiratory action) then the 
air becomes unwholesome. 

We have taken 30 cubic inches as a measure of the amount 
of air taken in and sent out at each breath, but we know that 
this amount varies greatly even in healthy breathing. In the 
same way, the number of breaths taken in each minute, shows 
great variations from time to time, even in men of the same age. 
But we may take 15 as representing a fair average in quiet 
breathing, remembering however that departure is frequent 
both from this number and from 30 cubic inches as the 
volume of "tidal" air. Now if 15 breaths be taken in each 
minute, 900 will be taken in the course of the hour, and during 
this time 27,000 cubic inches or 154 cubic feet of air will be 
fouled with the products of breathing, carbonic acid being 
present to the extent of 4 p.c. But respiratory carbonic acid 
(as we have seen) must not exceed 2 parts in 10,000 if the air 
is to be wholesome, that is to say the i5f cubic feet of expired 
air must be diluted 200 times. This will give about 3000 cubic 
feet of fresh air as the quantity with which a man should be 
supplied hourly under the given conditions, and about this 
quantity is contained in a room 17 feet square and 10 ft. 6 in. 
high. It is clear that to drive 3000 cubic feet of fresh air 



CHAP. III.] Air in relation to Life. 29 

across one end of such a room, hourly, would not give the 
necessary supply to a man stationed at the other end ; on the 
other hand it is clear that, could the products of breathing be 
removed as they are formed, wholesome air would be main- 
tained with intimate admixture of considerably less than 3000 
cubic feet of fresh air in the hour. 

So far we have considered the necessities of a man who 
may be taken as an average man, resting, or at least not 
doing hard labour. It should be remembered that women and 
children need slightly less than this amount, while, for a man 
working hard, the hourly supply of fresh air should probably be 
doubled. 

§ 10. When we consider not only indoor life, but life in 
artificial light new sources of impurity affect the air. Candles, 
lamps, and gaslights, are all consumers of oxygen, and the 
amount of carbonic acid they produce is large. It varies of 
course with the wax, paraffin, or gas respectively used ; but it 
is probably not overstating the truth to say, that an ordinary 
oil lamp produces 3 times as much, and a batswing gas 
burner between 3 and 4 times as much carbonic acid 
in the course of an hour as does a man. Carbonic acid 
and water are the only important additions made by lamps and 
candles to the air in which they burn ; the fouling of air due 
to gas, on the other hand, is partly due to products to which, in 
addition to carbonic acid, its burning gives rise. Looked at 
from this point of view, gas must be regarded as the least 
wholesome of illuminants, when it is burnt without precaution 
in inhabited buildings. And although the carbonic acid pro- 
duced by any ordinary illuminant is (volume for volume) less 
harmful than that produced by breathing, — not of course 
because of difference in the carbonic acid but because of ac- 
companying changes— yet the action of all forms of artificial 
light, except the electric light, must be reckoned with seriously 
in considering the healthful housing of man. 



30 Domestic Economy. [pt. i. 



IV. The composition of the air may be changed by the introduc- 
tion of gases not usually present which have important 
effects on its relation to life. 

{a) Carbon mo7ioxide {also known as carbonic oxide, and to 
be distinguished carefully fro7?i carbon dioxide or carbonic acid). 
This gas is found in the fumes from brick-kilns or Hme-kilns, 
in the gases which come from blast furnaces, and from stoves 
in which coke or charcoal is burnt. It is also found at times 
in the air of coal-mines, and is present in coal gas. Indeed it 
forms about yV of coal gas as we ordinarily burn it ; an escape 
of gas would thus set free a comparatively large 
amount of carbon monoxide into the air. Now it has 
been said more than once that the main value of air to living 
creatures consists in the fact that it is a source of oxygen, 
and we know that the substance which carries oxygen from 
the air throughout the body is, in man and in all the higher 
animals, haemoglobin — the colouring matter of the red corpuscles 
of the blood. Only by means of this haemoglobin united with 
oxygen (and then known as oxyhaemoglobiji) can the body gain 
the element which is so essential to its well-being; and the 
most dangerous form of starvation is oxygen-starvation. 
Carbon monoxide is poisonous because it brings 
about oxygen starvation. Like oxygen it unites or com- 
bines with the red colouring matter of the blood, but more 
firmly than does oxygen. Thus if a solution of haemoglobin 
be exposed to air holding both oxygen and carbon monoxide, 
the union with the latter takes place more readily and more 
firmly than that with the former, carbofiic oxide haemoglobiji is 
carried by the circulating blood instead of oxy haemoglobin, and 
the body dies for lack of oxygen. It dies indeed as if oxygen 
were absent ; air loaded with carbon monoxide is of no more 
service for breathing than if it contained no oxygen at all. 

It is probable that no year passes without the occurrence of 



CHAP. III.] Air in relation to Life. 31 

deaths from carbon monoxide poisoning, but as domestic life is 
arranged at present in England (with its attendant fires and 
lighting) the danger is faced rather by men engaged in special 
work than by the dwellers in houses. 

{b) Sulphuretted hydrogen. This is the ill-smelling gas 
which is given off from rotting eggs, and from the putrefactive 
breaking up of other nitrogenous substances : it is present for 
example in sewer gas. It is also found in, or readily formed 
from the waste of certain chemical works. Sulphuretted hydro- 
gen is a powerful poison, but cannot be regarded as an in- 
sidious poison, for even in traces it is detected by its repulsive 
smell. When present in the air in sufficiently great quantity, 
its poisoning action has some resemblance to that of carbon 
monoxide. It combines readily and firmly with oxygen, and 
can prevent the red colouring matter of the blood from com- 
bining wdth the oxygen which properly belongs to it. Thus, 
as in the case we have just considered, the body dies from 
oxygen-starvation. Sulphuretted hydrogen does not itself 
unite with any part of the blood but is simply dissolved, 
probably in the blood plasma, and thus it differs from carbon 
monoxide. The oxyhaemoglobin, deprived of its oxygen, is left 
uncombined with any gas ; it becomes then the body which 
we know as reduced haemoglobin ; and which, in health, is 
characteristic of venous rather than of arterial blood. 

(yc) Nitrous oxide. This is not a common impurity in 
air but is well-known as an anaesthetic in dentistry. Its 
physiological action forms an interesting contrast to those just 
considered for it does not in any way hinder the union of 
haemoglobin with oxygen. But, dissolved in the blood during 
its passage through the lungs, it is carried to all the capillaries 
of the body, bathing all the tissues and, among others, the 
central nervous system. And in small quantities the gas 
wakes up or stimulates certain of those cells of the nervous 
system so that the uncontrollable movements which have given 



32 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

to it the name of laughing gas are excited : in larger quantities 
it deadens the nervous tissue for a time, and thus, insensitive- 
ness (anaesthesia) is produced. 



V. The composition of the air breathed may change according 
to the fiafure and atnount of solid matter present. 

Other gaseous impurities are present in air in certain 
places and under special conditions, but those just named are 
of the highest general importance. But in studying the air in 
relation to life we have to deal with matter which like them is 
no integral part of the air, but which, unlike them, is solid 
matter. 

The air, as we know, has mass and weight ; and offers great resistance, 
e.g. to the rapid movement through it of an open umbrella. This 
resistance is not seen clearly when some rather large mass of heavy 
material such as a stone or a sovereign is thrown or falls to the ground. 
But whereas a stone can be thrown with the hand fifty yards, a handful of 
sand of the same weight (and sand is only stone broken small) cannot be 
sent more than a few feet. And when a sovereign is beaten out into gold 
leaf it is carried on the lightest breath of air, although gold is almost the 
heaviest substance known. This is because the total surface of the sand- 
fragments and of the gold leaf is enormously greater than that of the stone 
and of the sovereign respectively, and the air resists their passage much 
more. And it comes to pass that substance which is hundreds of times 
heavier than the air may, if it is in sufficiently fine particles, fall through the 
air so slowly as practically to float in it. Such particles are the dust of 
the air ; and we may say that atmospheric dust is present abundantly for a 
height of one mile, or in places for many miles, from the surface of the 
earth. In the higher (and rarefied) layers of air these particles are ex- 
quisitely fine; near the surface of the earth they are coarser, — particles 
such as we see when a sunbeam falls into a darkened room. This dust of 
the air is always shifting, falling however slowly on the land and the sea 
and being constantly renewed, so that the dust of to-day is not the dust of a 
week ago. And the change of place of dust particles may be most 
striking : volcanic dust from an eruption of Vesuvius has fallen to the earth 
at Constantinople, and after the great eruption of the volcano Krakatoa it 
was calculated that the fine dust, thrown many miles into the air, must 
have travelled more than once round the globe before it fell. 



CHAP. III.] Air in relation to Life. 33 

§ II. Now in domestic life we have to deal with dust 
which, as compared with that in the air of a mountain-top, is 
greatly increased in amount and is of more varied nature. 
But the particles which make it up fall into two great groups, 
separated by a distinction which, if it is rough, is convenient. 
There is in the first place organic solid matter in the air, and 
this may be popularly described as matter which is or has 
recently been part of living beings : in the second place there 
is inorganic solid matter., matter which has not immediate or 
recent connection with living beings, and is often popularly 
called mineral. 

Inorganic particles in dust. Organic bodies, of which we 
have just given a rough definition, are, to the chemist, com- 
pounds in which the element carbon is present ; for in every- 
thing that lives or has lived there is carbon — for example, in 
skin, in wool, in silk, in paper, in cork. But carbon, existing 
alone, is more properly included among the inorganic solid 
matters of the air, and it is probably the commonest impurity 
with which men come in contact. For soot — condensed and 
aggregated smoke — is carbon, and, at least in a country so 
smoky and so densely populated as is England, there can be 
few who do not daily breathe air in which soot is present. 
Some of the particles thus breathed are stopped in the com- 
plicated and twisted passages of the nose, some are stopped in 
the windpipe and bronchial tubes and cast out with the 
discharges (secretions) of these passages. But enough carbon, 
very finely divided, reaches the lung-tissue proper, to deepen 
its tint from the pinkish colour of the baby's lung to dirty or 
even blackish red in grown men, and this change is of course 
especially striking in the dwellers in cities. 

Considered from a mechanical point of view, the presence 
of much foreign matter in the lungs is disadvantageous, but 
carbon is probably the least harmful solid substance taken in 
in breathing, for it is not a poison nor an acute irritant. But 

B. 2f 



34 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

sometimes positive injury to the delicate lung tissue follows the 
breathing of fine mineral dust which fills the air when certain 
trades are carried on. Stonemasons and miners, — for example 
those who work in the gold mines with "dry bore" — suffer 
greatly from this sort of irritation, and the short lives of the 
" dry grinders " of Sheffield were notorious some years ago. 
Even with the improved arrangements for work, and the 
careful legislation of recent years, injury may be still great, 
and one well-known form of diseased lung is known as stotie- 
mason^s lung. 

Organic particles in dust. These are sometimes actually 
living substance, and sometimes they may be called the debris 
of living beings ; they form the greater part and certainly the 
most dangerous part of domestic dust. Almost all friction of 
solids (unless these are bathed with liquid) sets free into the air 
minute fragments which have been attached to, or have formed 
part of one or both of the solids thus rubbed. For example 
the thin surface-scales of skin (epidermal cells) are shed daily by 
all animals possessing them ; tiny fragments of dried excreta, of 
hair, cotton, fur, and feathers are very widespread, and in the 
carrying-on of certain different trades the two last named are 
present in dangerous amount. The dust-like pollen of flowers 
is, at times, a noticeable element in dust, especially such 
comparatively light pollen as forms what has been called the 
"smoke" of the yews and pine trees, (the so-called showers of 
sulphur) or the odorous dust of the hay-field. And other 
products of simpler plant-life abound. We know that all jam, 
damp bread, jelly, and many other eatables mould if exposed 
to the air, especially in summer. The moulds which are so 
familiar as blue-green or white, dusty patches, are really simple 
plants, visible to the naked eye only when they are gathered 
into masses. The spores of these plants (see above § 2) 
are in all air, and when suitable material for their growth is 
exposed to the air, they grow, and give rise to moulds. Very 



CHAP. III.] Air in relation to Life. 35 

nearly related to these are the particles popularly known as 
disease ge?'?ns, which we have recognised as exceedingly simple 
plants, members of the group of Bacteria and properly known 
as pathogenic bacteria^. We have said that bacteria of many 
different kinds may be present in the air (either as spores or 
as bacteria themselves) and this especially when they are dry. 
This being so, they are taken in with the breath, the harmless 
and the harmful alike. Now there is perhaps no sheet of 
living matter more delicate than those membranous cells, which 
are all that separate the air in the lungs from the blood that 
courses through the lung-capillaries. Moreover the extent of 
this delicate tissue is great ; it has been estimated that the 
surface of the human lungs spread flat would cover an area of 
90 square metres ; in other words, the lining cells would form 
a sac or bag able to line completely the floor, the ceiling and 
the walls of a room 14 feet square by 10 feet high. Delicate 
as these cells are, when they are whole and sound, even 
disease-producing bacteria may be inhaled without necessarily 
producing disease. But some weakness which has existed 
from birth, or some local injury due to cold, or the irritant 
effect of some inorganic particles breathed, or constant ex- 
posure to impure air, may produce spots of injury where the 
" germs " can find a home and food-material, and whence they 
enter the general circulation; just as an open wound will always 
form good growing-ground for the bacteria of the air if it be 
exposed to them. We have seen above (§11) that consump- 
tion may follow the breathing of poisonous dust, and it was a 
common sequel to the work of dry grinding in past years, — not 
because steel dust could in itself give rise to consumption, 
but because, irritating the lungs, it weakened them, and made 
them especially susceptible to the bacteriufn proper to that 
disease. 

The well-known wool-sorter's disease^ again, is directly as- 
sociated with poisonous dust : as the Alpaca wool is " sorted," 

^ Cp. above § 3. 

3—2 



3^ Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

anthrax and its spores (which have been lurking in the fleece) 
are shaken into the air. But anthrax is the special bacterium 
which gives rise alike to the wool-sorter's disease and the 
splenic fever of cattle, and its constant presence in the air, 
breathed during each working day, enables it to get a hold on 
at least the majority of the men long occupied in the sorting- 
room, with disastrous, often fatal results. 



CHAP. IV.] 37 



CHAPTER IV 
Ventilation. 

§ 12. The foregoing considerations touching the ordinary 
constituents and the accidental and changing impurities of air 
are far from complete, but they may put us in a position to 
understand the problems with which we have to deal, in 
ventilation. 

We are concerned with the maintenance of fairly healthy 
life under difficult conditions. 

In the first place it is the life of men in limited spaces of 
air, and men are at once taking from the air the element 
which is all important to life and pouring out into it an 
actively injurious gas. 

In the second place it is largely life in artificial light (at 
least in the case of most town-dwellers) ; and almost all sources 
of artificial Hght have a vitiating action on the air, comparable 
with that due to man. 

But in the third place it is the life of persons dressed in 
clothes which are for the most part imperfectly clean. We know 
that glands of two kinds are constantly passing their secretions 
on to the surface of the human body, — the sweat glands and 
the sebaceous glands, the latter opening at the bases of the 



38 Domestic EcoJtomy. [PT. I. 

hairs. The sweat carries water, common salt, some com- 
pHcated fatty (often odoriferous) compounds and some urea, 
which last we know as an important nitrogenous waste matter ; 
the sebaceous secretion is mainly the changed and broken- 
down cells of the little glands which yield it, and is rich in 
fatty matters with some admixture of nitrogenous substance. 
Now the amount of these secretions varies greatly (there may 
be from 2 litres to 20 litres in the course of 24 hours) but 
they are constantly formed ; of sensible perspiration we are 
conscious when the temperature round us is high, especially in 
moist air, or the exertion is great, — but insensible perspiration 
is present at all other times. What is its fate? There is of 
course loss by evaporation, loss of water and of some of the 
more volatile constituents of the secretions, but a residuum 
must always be deposited upon the skin, or must soak into the 
clothes. Let us suppose that the skin is cleansed completely 
by bathing twice in the day ; the clothes worn near it will in 
one day not be seriously polluted, and their exact condition 
will depend largely on the substance of which they are made. 
Thus the most pervious clothing naturally allows the most free 
escape of the water of the skin secretions and accompanying 
volatile matters, while relatively impervious clothing (such as 
linen and cotten) causes the deposition of liquid sweat which 
soaks the garments in contact with it\ The list of impervious 
clothing is headed by such articles as are "waterproof"; most 
persons are familiar with the discomforts of exertion taken 
while macintosh is worn, and the sensible discomfort is only 
the expression of hindrance to that free escape of matter 
which, in an unclothed man, would attend the vigorous action 
of a flushed skin. However carefully bathing is carried out, 
however carefully the materials of clothing be chosen, still it is 
evident that in the course of a few days, some complex 
organic matter, — very susceptible to putrefaction and other 

^ See below, § 63. 



CHAP. IV.] Ventilatioji. 39 

chemical changes — must impregnate the garments worn near 
the skin. And when we remember that even daily bathing 
is not customary among the bulk of the inhabitants 
of England, that clothing is often carelessly chosen 
and impervious, that some articles of dress which are worn 
for weeks or months may be in daily contact with the skin 
(this is the case with some dress bodices of women) we realize 
vividly the power of clothes for evil. 

Fourthly, we are considering the life of men in furnished 
dwellings. Here we have a source of impurity which is closely 
related to that last named. We know how the moisture given 
off from human beings condenses into drops on the wall of a 
crowded room. Something like this condensation is always 
going on in inhabited dwellings, on walls, ceiling, and furniture; 
furniture is, moreover, constantly touched by hands which may 
be unclean, but which, if they are clean, always bear the 
natural (and healthy) grease of the skin. We are familiar with 
the "close" smell and oppressiveness of the air in a heavily 
furnished room which has been shut up for some time without 
occupation ; it is probably the traces of human life in the past 
now undergoing putrefactive or other chemical changes which 
give rise to unwholesome and offensive products. It has long 
been taught that air vitiated by breathing is especially poisonous 
because it bears from the lungs organic matter apt to putrefy. 
But the latest observations and experiments on this point give 
ground for believing that it is not frof?i the breath itself but 
from warit of cleanliness in the body or in the room iiihabited., 
that these odorous and harmful substances spring. 

Lastly, we deal in many cases with the life of unhealthy 
men. Much sickness, especially infectious sickness, is of course 
gathered into the special dwellings which are arranged for its 
careful treatment. But in schools, in public meetings, in 
carelessly ordered homes, and in the crowded homes of the 



40 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

very poor, there must be sometimes conscious, sometimes 
unknowing, admixture of the breath and other waste matters of 
the unhealthy with those of the strong. Few things can be 
more dangerous than the sputum of a consumptive patient left 
to dry upon the floor and then rubbed to a light dust by 
passing feet, and there is upon record, actual death of an 
apparently healthy person from this source of infection. 

§ 13. Consideration of the actual methods of ventila- 
tion by which the difficulties named above are dealt with, 
belongs clearly to the practical side of domestic economy; there 
are however certain aims which must be before the practical 
worker even if they are not entirely capable of realization. In 
noticing these we may fitly speak at once of the gaseous 
impurities of air, and of dust, for as we have seen, even the 
free, country air is not dustless, while the dust of dwellings 
helps to form a serious problem in domestic life. 

We may say truly, though with apparent contradiction, that 
the treatment of impurities of all sorts in the air should be 
preventive and curative. 

As preventive treatment we may group the following : — 

{a) The fitting of interiors, and the choice of furniture. A 
room abounding in cornices or mouldings with flat upper 
surfaces (especially in places which are difficult of access) is 
clearly fitted to gather dust. This is recognized so far that, in 
some new hospitals, the flooring joins the walls at a curve 
from which dust can easily be cleaned, and the more frequent 
replacement of a right angle by a curve, or of flat surfaces by 
sloping or bevelled surfaces would be a distinct sanitary gain. 
The dangers of upholstered furniture are familiar; where the 
inhabitants of a dwelling are leisured and few in number 
careful treatment may practically abolish these dangers, but 
when great numbers of ill-cared-for human beings are gathered 



CHAP. IV.] Ventilation. 41 

together there should be no furniture which cannot be 
subjected to severe and effectual cleansing. 

{b) The choice of nieafis of lighting and heating is of high 
importance where such choice can be made. It will be readily 
gathered from the foregoing pages that all illuminants, all fires, 
all stoves, are not alike, in detail, in their effect upon the 
air, — that they vary in heating action, in drying action, in their 
use of oxygen, and in the giving out of different injurious 
gases ; it is clear that by the use or rejection of certain of 
these lighting and warming agents the fouling of the air may 
be hastened or checked. 

{c) The use of sunlight in rooms can hardly be too much 
advocated as a check of putrefactive change. We have seen 
(§ 4 c) what a remarkably destructive effect the sunlight exerts 
on the great majority of bacteria, and it is probable that no 
room, bathed in sunlight, would ever show vigorous bacterial 
growth on its walls, on its furniture, or in its air. Doi^e fion va 
il sole, va it medico (Where the sunlight does not enter, the 
doctor comes) is an old Italian proverb which recent researches 
only confirm, and no one who is intelligently concerned for 
domestic purity will shut out the sun. 

{d) It is perhaps departing slightly from the point, to 
touch on the relation of sickness to these preventive measures : 
yet the necessity of isolating invalids who suffer from 
infectious disease and of the careful destruction of 
all their excreta can hardly be too often pressed home. 
And, as the lack of care in these matters, may readily give 
disease-producing bacteria as an element of household dust, 
the matter really touches that we have in hand. 

§ 14. By the neglect of these preventive measures how- 
ever, or in spite of them, the fouling of air is an undeniable 
fact, — indeed the commonly accepted meaning of ventilation 



42 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

is that it is a process which removes, rather than prevents, 
impurity. And successful curative ventilation is such that 
certain ends are reached or approached. The chief of these 
ends may be stated as follows : 

{a) The fresh air supplied is mixed intijiiately with the 
existing air of the room. We have pointed out (§ 9) that to 
drive great volumes of fresh air across one end of a room is 
not efficient ventilation, and unless free circulation or very 
thorough mixture in some form is assured, parts of the air 
of a room into which even a breeze is blowing may remain 
astonishingly foul. 

{b) The fresh air is admitted without the for77iation of a 
'"''cold draught.''^ It would of course be possible to bring about 
complete change of air by means of cold draughts properly 
arranged, but so many other disastrous results follow that such 
a scheme cannot be called successful. In the open air there 
is probably nothing which can be called a draught ; in closed 
rooms, especially when the temperature is high, currents of 
cold air are especially felt by the human skin, and produce 
sudden discharge from eyes and nose closely resembling that 
of hay-fever, or the more lasting effects of cold or chill. 

{c) The entrance of fresh air is accompanied by the 
removal of the products of breathing and burning. This is a 
great economy ; it is the fouling rather than the exhaustion of 
air with which we have to do in breathing or in burning ; if 
the impurities remain, a much larger volume of fresh air must 
be admitted to bring about proper dilution of them than if 
they are carried off wholly or in part. And this removal is of 
special importance when diseased persons are present, — as 
they may well be in schoolrooms or crowded halls. 

§ 15. As in the case of preventive ventilation, so in the 
case of curative ventilation, the dust of dtvellings must be 
reckoned with. All vigorous rubbing of dusty fittings and 



CHAP. IV.] Ventilation. 43 

furniture adds new impurity to the air, and the gentle removal 
of dust by wiping can hardly be urged too strongly. Damp 
cloths, which hardly give the highest polish to furniture, are 
most valuable for this gentle removal, and in sweeping floors 
the value of damp particles, such as sawdust, tea-leaves, or (in 
America) finely torn paper, is generally recognized. It would 
hardly be going too far to say that no furniture should be 
polished which is not first nearly dust-free. The aim 
of dusting of course is permanently to remove dust from the 
room where it is found ; thus the frames of beds, and hollow 
heads to beds, bookcases, or wardrobes — if such be necessary 
—should be covered with some non-absorbent covering which 
may be removed at intervals and carried completely away with 
the dust which has settled upon it. 

§ 16. In leaving this subject, — the relation to life of the 
air which is at once so important in purity and so easily made 
impure, — it is perhaps worth while to urge what great power 
(in the matter of personal health) lies in the hands of each 
individual. The more vigorous is the life,— that is the sum of 
all the chemical changes — in a living body, the more fitted is 
that body to withstand the ill effects of harmful surroundings. 
It has been said that there is a "margin of resistance to injury," 
and this is widest in health and is narrowed in the weakly. 
One great promoter of vigorous life is, of course, the vigorous 
action of the skin, and this is aided by careful cleansing and by 
frequent change of healthy clothing. But there is another 
activity — that of breathing — which is often grossly neglected. 
Many persons hardly ever take deep breaths from the chest ; 
the possible lung capacity for each individual is hardly 
everused to the full. This is a form of oxygen starvation, 
perhaps not directly suicidal, but enough to injure one of the 
main sources of life ; there can be no doubt that the habit of 
taking deep breaths, especially in the fresh air, would give in- 
creased mechanical strength to the lungs and increased vigour 



44 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

to their delicate, lining cells. If, in addition to this, the habit 
of breathing through the nose become fixed, an additional safe- 
guard is provided. The cold air is warmed and further 
moistened before it actually reaches the lungs, and, the 
complex nasal passages act as ground where dust particles, 
dead or living, are checked. And this checking is of the 
greatest importance, as mucin and the remnants of cells are 
constantly being sent to the exterior, and with them may be 
carried that foreign matter which, did it reach the actual 
substance of the lung, would irritate or poison. 



CHAP, v.] 45 



CHAPTER V. 

Water in relation to Life. 

§ 17. We are here concerned with water considered in 
relation to life. And in this relationship we have to deal 
with it as a drink, as a means of bathing and cleansing the 
person, and as a means of cleansing clothes, household fur- 
niture, dwellings and the surroundings of man. As a constituent 
of the air we have already named it (§ 8), and as a constituent 
of food we shall deal with it in succeeding chapters. But it 
must not be forgotten that the presence of water in food has 
much to do with its use as a drink : if a rabbit be fed on 
lettuce or cabbage it need drink no water (in 100 parts by 
weight of lettuce, 96 are water), but water should be supplied 
with its dry food. In the same way we are conscious that the 
need for drinking arises much more strongly when we eat a 
sponge-cake than when we eat milk porridge ; in the one case 
water is a large constituent of the article of diet, in the other it 
is taken as an adjunct. Whether water be used much or little, 
however, its quality is of high importance ; and though this 
is true especially of water used as a drink, it is true in a less 
degree of that used for cleansing purposes, although different 
characteristics are harmful or advantageous to the different uses. 

§ 18. To say that the quality of water is of high im- 
portance is to say, by implication, that what is chemically 
one substance has important varieties. And this is true : 



46 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

chemically pure water is never found in nature. It may be 
prepared by distillation, and, since the water of the air has 
arisen by evaporation, which is the first stage of distillation, 
we might perhaps expect it to be pure and constant in quality. 
But when this atmospheric water reaches the earth once more, 
as dew, or rain, it is pure no longer. We have seen (§ 6) 
that the air is a mixture of gases, and that immense numbers 
of fine particles, forming atmospheric dust, are suspended in 
it ; now water has very great solvent power ^ and this solvent 
power is shown, both as it passes through the air, and, later, 
as it passes through the earth. It dissolves the atmospheric 
gases with certain other matters (varying with the region of 
the air concerned), and, further, it carries down in suspension 
some particles which are not dissolved, such as the carbon 
particles which may be seen in the rain-water collected in a 
smoky town. Thus rain, although probably the purest natural 
water (especially when it is gathered in the country, and at 
the end of a long wet period), has many and varied impurities ; 
and dew\ which must rank with the purer forms of rain, can 
hardly have more than a romantic use for drinking and for 
washing. The questions that are before us then are the 
following : nvhat is the nature of the impurities in water ? 
what is their importance ? how far may they be disregarded 
in the use of water for what are commonly called domestic 
purposes ? 

A. The characters of the iinpurities in fiatural waters. 

§ 19. In the first place, gases are present ; we have said 
above that this is true even of rain-water, and we may add, 
further, that it is true of the waters of the sea, of springs, lakes 
and rivers, and wells. It is of course from oxygen dissolved in 

1 In the dew-ponds, which are of such interest and have been lately 
investigated, we find large quantities of dew-water, but these ponds are too 
rare to be dwelt upon here. 



CHAP, v.] Water in relation to Life. 47 

water that the plants and animals which are " water breathers " 
draw the oxygen necessary for their healthy life. All water 
exposed to the air dissolves not only oxygen, but those gases 
which are normally present in the atmosphere, and others 
which are present frequently or rarely. Nitrogen (with argon) 
is the least soluble of the ordinary constituents of air ; oxygen 
is twice, and carbonic acid about seventy times as soluble. 
Consequently, when water takes up gases from the air the 
proportions in which they exist are changed, and 
"dissolved air" has not the composition of the air 
of the atmosphere. We have seen in § 6 that 100 volumes 
of atmospheric air contain 

" Nitrogen," 78'35 volumes. 

Oxygen, 2077 volumes. 

Carbonic acid, '03 volumes. 

If air of this composition be in contact with 100 volumes 
of water at ordinary temperature and pressure, the water will 
dissolve 

"Nitrogen," i •16 volumes, 

Oxygen, '62 volumes. 

Carbonic acid, "03 volumes \ 

so that in the atmospheric air there is i part of carbonic acid 
to 700 of oxygen and 2600 of "nitrogen,'" while the ^''dissolved 
air " in the water consists of i part of carbonic acid to about 
20 of oxygen and 40 of " nitrogen." 

^ This calculation is from tables for 15° C. Except in the case of 
hydrogen, the amount of gas absorbed increases as the temperature becomes 
lower, and at freezing point 100 volumes of water will absorb from the 
air at atmospheric pressure 

"Nitrogen," 1*59 volumes, 

Oxygen, -854 volumes, 

Carbonic acid, '054 volumes, 

making a total of 2| volumes. This is the amount of gases commonly 
dissolved in 100 volumes of rain-water. 



48 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

At higher temperatures, less of these gases is taken up; and 
by boiling the water they are completely expelled. 

Sulphurous acid is nearly 3000 times as soluble as nitrogen, 
hydrochloric acid more than 30,000 times, and ammonia more 
than 50,000 times as soluble. Thus, the air is purified from 
these gases by the rain, which, in some manufacturing districts, 
may become even poisonous to vegetation because of what 
it has dissolved. These highly soluble gases are not driven 
off from water by boiling. 

When water is exposed to a mixture of gases, such as air, 
the quantity of any one gas taken up by the water is pro- 
portional to the quantity of that gas in contact with the 
surface of the water; or, more exactly, with a square inch of 
surface. We have seen above that, under ordinary conditions, 
100 volumes of water will dissolve from the air '03 volumes 
of carbonic acid ; if the air contain twice its usual percentage 
of carbonic acid, the water will dissolve '06 volumes, and if 
pure carbonic acid replace the air (at the same pressure), the 
water will dissolve ^"'^ "^ times as much, that is, it will take 
up its own bulk of carbonic acid\ Now the quantity of gas 
in contact with the water can be still further increased by 
increasing its pressure ; when the pressure of air (or any 
other gas) is doubled, every cubic foot contains twice as much 
air (or gas) as it did before. Hence, water exposed to carbonic 
acid at 2, pressure of 2 atmospheres will take up twice its own 
bulk of the gas, or — to put the same fact in other words — 
nearly 7000 times the amount that water can take up from 
ordinary atmospheric air. This property is used by the manu- 
facturers of aerated waters : they pump carbonic acid gas 
at several atmospheres' pressure into iron tubes containing 
water, and the water, taking up many times its own volume 
of the gas, is bottled in this condition. When the bottles 

^ We have seen (§ 6) that in 10,000 parts of fresh air there are 3 parts 
of carbonic acid. 



CHAP, v.] Water in relation to Life. 49 

are opened the gas escapes, at first violently, then more gently, 
until the quantity of gas contained in the water is equivalent 
to that which it would take up from the air around it. A 
similar "loading" or "charging" with gas characterizes some 
natural waters, such as those of Seltzer or of Spa. In their 
underground wanderings they encounter carbonic acid gas 
(formed by some of the chemical actions which are always 
going on in the earth's interior), and at high pressures. They 
absorb it, and so become converted into the effervescing 
waters that we know. 

In the second place, substances in solution (other 
than gases) are present. These are substances dissolved by 
water as it passes through the air (rain, dew, fog), or as, later, 
it passes through the earth (streams, lakes, rivers, wells, and 
the sea), and they may be conveniently distinguished as inor- 
ganic and organic (compare above, § 11). 

Of the inorganic substances in solution perhaps the 
most important are the salts of calcium., that is, lime. These are 
found in all water which has fallen upon or trickled through 
limestone rocks (calcium carbonate) or rocks in which sulphate 
of lime is present, and are found all the more abundantly 
because the water contains carbonic acid : in pure water, they 
are but slightly soluble, but when carbonic acid is present, 
they dissolve with ease. Calcareous waters are termed hard 
waters., a term which has come to denote their behaviour with 
soaps. Soaps, when they are mixed with pure water, form a 
lather, — the peculiar filmy froth with which everyone is familiar. 
But soaps are alkaline salts of fatty acids, and they form 
insoluble salts by chemical action with the salts of 
hard waters: curdy precipitates fall — precipitates of these 
insoluble salts, — and not until the chemical action which 
they indicate is at an end, can the "lather" be found. 
Thus some soap is wasted, so far as the purposes for which 
soap is used are concerned. It is clear that rain waters can 

B. A 



50 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

never be hard; much of the spring water of England and 
some well water is very hard, and river water is, as a rule, 
intermediate, holding less chalky matter than many springs. 

We have spoken of these calcareous salts as the most im- 
portant soluble, inorganic constituent of waters, both because 
of their widespread distribution, and because, as we shall see, 
they are especially important from a domestic point of view. 
Other salts are richly present in some waters, mainly in the 
water of springs : among these are sulphate of magnesia^ found 
in the saline springs of Epsom ; sodium carbonate in the waters 
of Vic/iy and Malvern ; carbonate of iron in the chalybeate 
wells of Tunbridge. The boiling springs of Iceland which 
are familiar as geysers have a good deal of silica dissolved in 
their waters, — that is, of the substance of which rock crystal 
and flint are composed, — and the brine waters of Droitivich 
are rich in sodium chloride^ bromide^ and iodide. All these 
however are medicinal and commercial, rather than domestic. 
But there are yet two inorganic salts which must be named, 
because both are due to the actions of man. The first is 
sodium chloride, occurring not as it does in the brine 
springs just named, nor in the waters of the sea, but in 
waters whose derivation shows that it can have had no legiti- 
mate origin, but is rather an indication of impurity springing 
from the refuse of man. The second is a salt of lead, 
generally the oxide combined with water (that is, the hydrate) 
which is formed by the joint action upon lead, of water and 
air. Rain-water standing on leaden roofs, or in leaden gutters, 
comes to contain this impurity, so also does any " soft " water 
which stands in leaden pipes ; water containing sulphates and 
carbonates does not act upon and dissolve lead in this way, 
so that the hardest waters are usually lead-free. 

But organic substances are also found in solution in 
water. From this group, since we are dealing with soluble 
substances, we must exclude all living creatures, for the tiny 



CHAP, v.] Wafer in relation to Life. 51 

organisms which inhabit water are, of course, not dissolved in 
it. But we include substances which they produce as part of 
their life 7mrk, either turned out from themselves (all soluble 
excreted matter), or produced in their surroundings. We have 
said above (§ i) that all putrefaction is the result of the work 
of bacteria, and one feature of this work is the production of 
substances which can be carried off in solution by 
water which comes in contact with decaying matter. 
If we consider for a moment the little runnels which, draining 
off a patch of peaty soil, form some small stream, or the water 
draining away from a farmyard, we can readily realize how 
rich water may be in the products of decay. Even when 
these small beginnings run into rivers, and become mixed with 
rain water and spring water, soluble organic matters may still 
be present, although they must be greatly diluted and have 
sometimes undergone chemical change. In rain, in deep wells 
and in springs, soluble organic impurities are not common ; 
it is in the water of lakes, of rivers and of surface wells that 
they are often found. And this is what we might expect ; 
rain has not yet touched the decay of the earth's surface ; 
the water of deep wells and springs has undergone changes 
in its slow journeyings through the substance of the earth ; 
but lakes \ rivers and surface wells are more immediately con- 
nected with the excreta or the decaying remains of animals 
and plants. 

There can be no doubt that the soluble organic sub- 
stances of which we are now speaking must be very various 
in nature. All living creatures can be killed and then broken 
up into substances which are very much the same for each 
creature, if the breaking up is carried far enough; such are 
free nitrogen, ammonia., free hydrogen., sulphuretted hydrogen., 
carbonic acid. But what are called intermediate products, or 
by-products, are different according to the nature of the 

^ Lake water is very variable in composition, and sometimes has very 
little matter inorganic or organic in solution. 



52 Domestic Economy, [PT. I. 

organism from which they are formed. Speaking of them as 
impurities in water, however, we usually group them together 
as "organic substances," partly perhaps because their special 
nature is not always determined (in " domestic " water their 
quantitative amount is small), partly because, as we shall see, 
it is important not to neglect organic matter whatever 
may be its nature. 

Closely connected with the soluble organic impurities of 
water are certain bodies, themselves inorganic ; these are 
nitrates and the less highly oxidized nitrites. They form 
a most noteworthy link in the chain of chemical processes 
by which plants and animals are bound together, for they 
are the bodies which form the main nitrogenous food of green 
plants living on the earth. At the same time their source is 
found in all decaying animal and vegetable matter, in all 
the nitrogenous excreta (or waste matter) of animals. The 
soil, the mud of rivers and lakes, every sewer and every 
refuse heap, all these are rich in organic nitrogen, i.e. organic 
nitrogen-holding compounds. And among these compounds, 
when the conditions of temperature and moisture are suitable, 
bacteria are working incessantly ; certain forms break up the 
proteids ; other forms break up the less complicated nitro- 
genous matter of the excreta (urea or uric acid) ; others finally 
seize on the broken-up matter (ammonia) and build it into 
the nitrates of which we are speaking. So it comes to pass 
that when nitrates or nitrites are found in water they are 
taken as indicating that organic matter is or has recently been 
present ; it is inferred from their occurrence that the water 
holding them has come in contact with the processes of putre- 
faction, or of that special form of it, ammoniacal fermentation, 
and therefore certainly with bacteria, and with substances 
suitable for the propagation of the bacteria of disease. 

In the third place, substances are found, suspended 
in water. These are most varied in nature, for we can say 



CHAP, v.] Water in relation to Life. 53 

briefly that any particles which go to make up the dust of 
the air may also be suspended (if they are insoluble) in 
water exposed to the air. As dust "settles" it settles upon 
water, as upon land, and though most water is constantly 
moving — trickling or running from higher to lower levels— 
nevertheless it can only escape from dust when it moves 
within the earth— for in the air, dust is everywhere, and 
everywhere is falling. In § ii we have considered the 
nature of dust; we have seen that inorganic and organic 
particles may be present in it and the classification made 
there may be applied to the particles in water. The sooty 
rain-water of towns is rich in suspended carbon, and it 
is mainly inorganic matter in very fine division which gives 
a glacier stream its well-known milky colour. In the mud 
of any muddy water, too, there is abundance of suspended 
inorganic matter, and a moment's thought reminds us of the 
sand and gravel washed down from high lands in many 
rapid mountain streams. But organic particles are often present 
too, and, as we shall see, have an importance all their own. 
Among them we must distinguish all debris of plants and 
animals which are insoluble in water, on the one hand, and, 
on the other, the tiny organisms which inhabit water and are 
invisible to the naked eye. Such are certain members of 
the Protozoa (as that group is named which contains the 
simplest animals known), the amoeba, the flagellate infusoria, 
which are sometimes made the subjects of popular scientific 
shows ; such too are the Bacteria, and it is with them 
that we are concerned here. We have seen in an earlier 
chapter that the presence of bacteria or their spores is 
almost universal. In the air, on the surface of the earth, 
in all natural waters, even in glacier-ice they are found, 
of various species, and of varying habit. But it is when the 
conditions best suited to their life are realized, that they are 
vigorous, and grow and increase. Thus, in distilled water 
they may live, and as many as 35 specimens have been found 



54 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

in a litre of rain-water, but in these fluids there is no abundant 
food ; again, we can hardly suppose that the bacteria in glacier- 
ice are in full activity for the time being. Water is indeed 
all important for their well-being, but it must be water bearing 
some food-materials. These are found both in soluble organic 
matter and in dead organic matter in suspension ; the waters 
of springs, lakes and rivers contain bacteria in numbers which 
depend largely upon the amount of organic matter present, 
and water which has received the outpourings of sewers be- 
comes a nutrient fluid in which bacteria thrive. It has been 
estimated that i cubic ce?itimetre of the water of the river 
Spree taken above Berlin contains about 6000 bacteria, while 
in I cubic centiitietre of water taken below the city 243,000 
are present. The total number of these minute creatures at 
any moment, in any water, must depend on very complex 
conditions ; even the water of rain is unlike, according as it 
has fallen through dusty air or through air washed by long 
previous rain ; and the waters of deep wells have lost by 
filtration through the earth varying numbers of the small 
organisms which they gathered on the earth's surface, while 
the completeness of the filtration must depend on the nature 
of the layers, or strata^ which have acted as a filter. Again, 
a shallow river flowing through sunny land has its bacteria 
exposed effectively to the action of sunshine, and we have 
learned that sunshine is a valuable germicide. It can naturally 
act much less in the turbid waters of some deep river flowing 
between high banks or beneath clouds and smoke. And in 
addition to these factors we have what is of great importance, 
the strife of different kinds of bacteria. When many 
different kinds are present in any given water it is practically 
certain that a struggle takes place among them ; some are 
weakened or killed ; others are able to get the upper hand, 
and flourish, making use of such food matters as the water 
suppHes. 

In Chapter 11. we have distinguished between pathogenic 



CHAP, v.] Water in relation to Life, 55 

and non-pathogenic bacteria,— those respectively which do and 
do not produce disease in human beings. Many of the 
organisms found in the water of springs and rivers belong to 
the latter group ; they are not disease-producing ; but disease- 
producing forms do occur, for example, when water has been 
in contact with human refuse. It will be readily understood 
that such refuse is often disease-bearing, and the soil of the 
earth, always rich in bacteria, almost always contains 
some pathogenic forms when it is taken from culti- 
vated spots, such as gardens. 

We see then that natural waters are never pure. Their 
impurities are : 

{a) Gases of various kinds; the gases of air, although 
not in the proportion in which they exist in the atmosphere ; 
sometimes nitric acid ; sometimes ammonia. 

{b) Inorganic substances in solution. The salts 
of calcium (hard waters) have the widest distribution ; salts 
of magnesium, sodium and iron are also found. Nitrates and 
nitrites springing from the breaking down and mineralization 
of organic nitrogenous matter occur, and salts of lead follow 
the action of soft water on leaden pipes, gutters, and roofs. 

{c) Organic substances in solution, mainly the 
products of the activity of plant life and animal life, or sub- 
stances immediately arising from the breaking down of these. 

{d) Inorganic substances not dissolved but in sus- 
pended particles ; mainly carbon, or the solid substance of 
the earth, and therefore very varied in nature. 

{e) Organic substances in suspension ; living or dead 
microscopic organisms ; Protozoa or Bacteria or other 
very simple fungi. 



56 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 



B. The i77iporta7ice of the impurities in natural waters. 

§ 20. We have now to ask, What is the importance of 
these foreign constituents ? How far may they be disregarded 
in what is commonly called the use of water for domestic 
purposes ? 

{ci) Gases. Ammonia and nitric acid are poisonous 
except in exceedingly small quantities, but the gases of or- 
dinary atmospheric air are without effect in drinking water 
except upon the palate (that is, probably, upon certain nerves), 
and their presence does not touch the value of water for 
cleansing purposes. The action on the palate is clear with 
most persons ; water from which the atmospheric gases have 
been expelled by boiling is usually distasteful, and the 
"stimulus" of abundant carbonic acid (in sparkling waters) 
gives rise to sensations that are generally pleasurable. It is 
urged by some that carbonic acid has a further action, tending 
to promote movements of the intestines and so to 
work against constipation. The action is not recog- 
nized universally, but we could readily imagine that the gas 
might act mechanically, stirring up the nerves of the intestinal 
wall, or perhaps the muscles themselves, and thus provoking 
muscular contractions. 

{b) Inorganic substances in solution. These have 
important action in washing waters and in drinking waters. 

In washing ivaters it is salts of lime which are especially 
disadvantageous. We have said that it is they which make 
water "hard," and that the term "hard" expresses the fact 
that the water which it describes is a soap destroyer. But the 
use of soap, in cleansing either clothes or utensils, is to break 
up the greasy matter which helps to form " dirt " so that by 
rubbing and other suitable treatment it may be removed ; if 
the soap is used to make chemical combination with the salts 



CHAP, v.] Water in relation to Life. 57 

of hard waters, i.e. is " destroyed," it is wasted from a com- 
mercial point of view. To a less degree, the hardness is a 
drawback when water is used for cleansing the person. Pro- 
bably, for cleansing all but the very unclean, water and rubbing 
are more important than soap ; they are enough to stimulate 
or excite the skin to proper activity, and to remove the products 
of its action. But, for susceptible or delicate skins, water 
charged with lime is harmful, not as a soap destroyer but in 
another way. Unless used carefully, it may irritate the skin 
surface generally, or it may aid in blocking the exit ducts 
of some of the minute skin glands, so that small " cysts " 
filled with hardened substance, or with matter, arise. As a 
drink, hard water offers a protection when leaden pipes are 
employed for carriage ; the series of chemical changes by which 
the pipes are eaten away and a compound of lead is dissolved 
in water, does not take place, at least where carbonates are 
present in the water. Drunk in small quantities the salts of 
hard water have not been shown to be harmful, except in 
cases of special delicacy of the stomach or intestines, but it 
is a doubtful benefit to drink large quantities of such waters. 
Thus a patient, carrying out the Salisbury cure, in a limestone 
district, would probably be ordered to use distilled water for 
his large daily consumption, rather than the natural chalky 
waters of limestone earth. 

Of the other soluble inorganic impurities of natural waters, 
we may say that their importance lies in their presence in 
drinking-waters, rather than in cleansing-waters. We might, 
without serious harm, wash a floor with a solution of Epsom 
salts or with Vichy water ; we might wash body-linen in water 
containing some salts of lead ; but these waters used for drinking 
have marked effect. The saline waters are, for the most part, 
aperient ^ They induce passage of unusual quantity of fluid 
from the capillaries of the intestinal walls into the intestine. 

^ See below, § 27. 



58 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

Thus the waste matters moving down the intestine become 
more fluid than their wont ; their passage is more rapid, their 
expulsion more easy. It is clear that such an action may be 
of great service occasionally, and when used intelligently, but 
that it would upset the healthy action of the body if the 
waters provoking it were drunk indiscriminatingly. Waters 
containing fiitraies and nitrites are of themselves without 
special effect in domestic use, but they are often avoided as 
undrinkable, lest the inorganic salts should indicate the 
presence of organic matter, still unchanged, or only partly 
changed by chemical action (cp. above). Salts of lead are 
a most serious impurity in drinking-water. Even in very 
small quantities they are poisonous, even fatally poisonous ; 
indeed, among the harmful inorganic impurities, they must 
be placed first. 

{c) Organic substances in solution. The effect of 
these depends on their nature ; some organic substances may 
be dissolved in drinking-water without acting for ill, but many 
soluble products of bacterial action are most har77iful. These 
are often grouped together and spoken of as toxines ; for, 
though physiological proof of their existence and power is 
well established, they have not in many cases been isolated 
as separate chemical bodies. Thus, the bacteria of tetanus 
(lockjaw) produce a toxine which can set up lockjaw if in- 
troduced into a healthy animal ; and the bacteria of diphtheria 
gives rise to a toxine which can set up fatal diphtheria. These 
actions are performed when, by careful experiment, the toxines 
are freed from the bacteria of tetanus or of diphtheria re- 
spectively, but it will be readily understood that in cases 
of water-pollution the disease-producing bacteria and their 
poisonous products are prescfit together. We may say, indeed, 
that organic matter in solution in drinking-water is always 
suspicious : it may have a special harmful action of its 
own ; it does indicate the presence of bacteria with all 



CHAP, v.] Water in relation to Life. 59 

their possibilities for evil. In cleansing-waters the im- 
portance of soluble matters of this nature is less ; but it 
would be inadvisable to bathe or to wash such utensils, as 
were to be used for the purposes of eating and drinking, in 
water rich in soluble organic matters. 

{d) Inorganic substances in suspension. We may 

say, briefly, that these are undesirable in drinking-waters, and 
often injurious in waters used for cleansing. Thus, the rain- 
water of large towns cannot generally be used for washing 
clothes because of its suspended carbon, and this, although 
its softness would make it an excellent medium for washing. 
Again, glacier water, or the water drawn from some deep 
wells, and containing sand, would not be chosen for purposes 
of washing or bathing, although it may be argued that the 
scrubbing action of the fine particles is cleansing and stimu- 
lating, and, certainly, a Swiss laundress would not hesitate to 
make use of a glacier stream. In considering the presence 
of similar particles in drinking-water we must remember that 
the alimentary canal (mouth, stomach, intestines, etc.) is really 
outside the body, and, as long as a continuous sheet of cells 
clothes it, foreign matter within the canal cannot do much 
harm. If such matter be abundant enough or penetrating 
enough to injure the cells of the wall, then grave consequences 
may follow. We named the stonemason's lung and the knife- 
grinder's lung as comparable cases of injury induced by 
breathing impurities ; but the lining-cells of the lung are more 
delicate than those of the bowel, and it would indeed be rare 
to find, in drinking-water, suspended matter as dense and 
irritating as that loading the air in the carrying out of certain 
trades. 

{e) Organic substances in suspension. It will be 
gathered from what has been said above, that these may be 
by far the 7nost dangerous impurities in tvater. As regards 
water used for bathing or cleansing, they are only important 



6o Domestic Economy. [PT. I 

if such water can be the means of carrying them to some 
susceptible part of a Uving animal. Natives in India have 
been known to wash milk-cans with unboiled water rich in 
the bacterium which is the immediate cause of cholera, and 
to spread a jelly-bag to "air" upon sand or earth abounding 
in the same pathogenic forms. Fortunately, in England, the 
conditions which make such action fatal do not often exist ; 
fortunately, of the many kinds of bacteria present in almost 
all natural waters, the majority are harmless. But, because 
the harmful or pathogenic forms are so powerful, everything 
that may indicate or allow their presence should be taken 
as a danger signal. Chlorides and nitrites are (as we have 
said) innocent in themselves : but if chlorides indicate pol- 
lution with sewage from dwellings, if nitrites show that organic 
matter has but lately been changed in the water, then, re- 
membering the foulness and mixed character of sewage, and 
the widespread existence of disease among men, we must look 
on these innocent substances with suspicion. 

Indeed, looking back on the list of impurities given, we 
may say briefly, that if asked to name those which are im- 
portant before all the rest, we should say : 

For laundry-work, those constituents which are soap 
destroyers. 

For drinking-water, bacteria. 



C. The treatment of the impurities in natttral waters. 

§ 21. It is not given to most housewives to choose the 
water which shall be used for domestic purposes and then 
to purify it. Any water may be purified by distillation, but 
distillation, to be efficient, needs more than the appliances 
of an ordinary household. And the choice of water is usually 
narrow, especially to the dwellers in towns ; it is not the house- 



CHAP, v.] Water in relation to Life. 6i 

keeper who organizes the water supply and plans the sanitary 
appliances. But, these facts notwithstanding, a grave respon- 
sibility rests on each housekeeper ; she can minimize if she 
cannot abolish the risks of water-drinking ; she can often 
make water harmless, if she cannot make it pure. Let us 
remember whence we draw our water; primarily, of course, 
from rain, but immediately from springs and surface wells, 
and such deep borings as are needed for Artesian wells; 
and from rivers and lakes. There is hardly any modern house 
in which water is not "laid on," running to taps through 
leaden pipes. All water, then, has fallen from the heavens, 
and much of it, before use, has had considerable contact with 
the earth. We will consider briefly which of the impurities 
named above is specially characteristic of each source. 

Rain-water contains gases, bacteria, often suspended 
carbon particles, sometimes lead, and, under special con 
ditions, nitric acid, sulphurous acid, ammonia. 

Surface- well water contains gases, often bacteria and 
their products, sometimes foulness from the drainage of cess- 
pools and other impurities of cultivation. 

Deep-well water is often poor in bacteria and their 
immediate products. The earth has acted as a filter and, 
during the slow filtration, chemical action has gone on, 
breaking up the "toxines" or other matters formed by bac- 
teria. But this slow passage through the earth has often caused 
much inorganic matter to go into solution ; such water then, 
may be rich in mineral compounds. 

Spring- water has much in common with the water of 
deep wells ; both have had a long passage through the sub- 
stance of the earth, both, it may be added, contain a relatively 
great amount of carbonic acid ; the " sparkle " of some spring- 
water is due to the presence of this gas. And in spring-water, 
as in deep-well water, bacteria and their products are scanty. 

River-water and lake-water is mixed in origin and 



62 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

varied in character. Bacteria are always present, and, some- 
times, disease-producing bacteria ; their numbers depend on 
the course of the water, its depth, its exposure to sunlight, 
the conflict of various forms, and on conditions so complex 
that it is difficult to make a statement which shall be true 
for all lakes and all rivers. But we may say, generally, that 
their waters are rich in organic matter, and poor in inorganic 
substances in solution, for on the one hand they have com- 
monly had sewage contamination, on the other hand the 
"hard" waters of the springs which help to feed them are 
diluted with rain-water, and probably lose their calcium salts 
to some of the minute animals living in lakes and rivers. 

How should a housekeeper deal with water which may 
reach her from one or from more than one of these sources ? 

id) There is no doubt that boiling is the most effectual 
safeguard, at least for drinking-water. By boiling sufficiently 
all disease-producing bacteria are killed, or, if spores are 
present, their vitality — in other words their virulence — is les- 
sened. Toxines may possibly be broken up by boiling \ for 
they are unstable, but, in such amount as they might occur, 
they would be comparatively harmless if unsupported by the 
active bacteria. Boiling also drives off carbonic acid, and 
thus some of the carbonate of lime which was dissolved by 
its aid falls as a white sediment or forms a white scum. But 
it must be remembered that this precipitated salt of lime should 
be remoz'ed either by deposit or by straining, because if taken 
with the boiled'water we cannot say that the softening 
is effectual. 

^ I do not think this has been demonstrated. It must be remembered 
that, e.g., the diphtheria toxine which has been injected with fatal effect 
was prepared from a pta^e culture of the diphtheria bacterium ; now toxines 
which occur in drinking-waters must be very largely diluted, — that is to 
say, that the danger from them is negligible as compared with the danger 
from living bacteria. 



CHAP, v.] Water in relation to Life. 63 

{b) Filtration is valuable if properly carried out, but 
very often it is not properly carried out. A filter which is at 
all neglected becomes mainly a nursery for bacteria ; 
air, water, organic matter, the bacteria themselves, are all 
present, and if the filter be kept in some rather warm corner, 
the temperature is highly favourable too. Commercial filtra- 
tion and chemical filtration are efficient ; domestic filtration 
may be efficient, but is often a mockery of purification. 

{c) Neither boiling nor filtration will free a water from 
the salts of lead. Here a housekeeper must consider the 
nature of the water she uses. If it be a hard water there is 
little risk of lead pollution ; if it be a soft water it should 
always be taken from the pipes for use after considerable 
flow. It is desirable that drinking water should never stay 
in a cistern ; anyone so placed that the use of a cistern is 
inevitable, should insure by regular runni?ig of the 7vater that 
there is little stagnation, either in the cistern, or in pipes. 

{d) Finally, there are two precautions which are less 
obvious than the foregoing. 

It has been found that when river-water is allowed to 
stand, the bacteria in it increase in number considerably. It 
is advisable then, that drifiking wafer should be freshly draiV7i. 

And it has been found further, that foreign bacteria intro- 
duced into sterilized water live better than if introduced into 
water from the same source, but unsterilized. Clearly then, 
boiled water should not be allowed to stand uncovered if it is 
to be drimk. It would, in this sterilized condition, prove a 
medium favourable to the life of contaminating bacteria. In 
fact, if standing be inevitable, as in some cases of scant water 
supply, it is well to place the boiled water in a covered glass 
vessel in the sunshine. 

It may be urged that the procedure recommended here is 
a " counsel of perfection " ; this may be so, but it is at least 



64 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

procedure which would serve well in times of epidemic disease, 
or in other specially anxious conditions ; it is procedure from 
which each housewife can shape her own action, having regard 
to her individual needs. And it may be urged, further, that 
we have dwelt unduly on the treatment of drinking-water, 
and neglected the treatment of water for the laundry. It 
must be remembered however that specialization of work 
grows as the years pass. The number of households who give 
" washing " to professional laundries constantly increases ; the 
problem of softening hard waters (by means other than 
boiling, with precautions) is transferred. But, though many 
persons do not wash clothes, almost everyone drinks. And 
it will probably be admitted that the destruction of soap, even 
the destruction of clothes, and the expenditure of labour, are 
all evils less crying than is the spread of disease which may 
weaken or destroy man. 



CHAP. VI.] 65 



CHAPTER VL 

' Foodstuffs. 

§ 22. We learn, from the teachings of Physiology, that all 
the living creatures in the world are continually undergoing 
loss of their substance ; the living matter of which they are 
made up is always breaking down into less complex bodies 
which are no longer living. The rate at which this takes place 
varies in the case of different creatures ; plants, for example, 
lose much less substance than do animals. But such an 
animal as a man constantly suffers loss of nitrogen-holding 
bodies (mainly urea) by the kidneys, loss of carbonic acid by 
the lungs, loss of salts of various complexity by the skin, and 
in each case there is also loss of water. The substances which 
are taken into the body to replace this loss are in the first place 
the oxygen of the ai?', and in the second place the heterogeneous 
bodies which we call Food. It is our business here to ask 
briefly how food acts, what part of the various articles of diet 
which we eat and drink daily are truly foodstuffs, and how, for 
good or ill, we affect various foods by one treatment of them 
or another before use. 

The Nature of Foodstuffs. 

§ 23. We cannot analyse the living substance of which a 
plant or an animal is made, without destroying it ; even the most 
skilful chemist is unskilled in dealing with the delicate fabric 

B. 5 



66 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

of protoplasm \ Now we know that in the absence of proto- 
plasm we do not meet with the voluntary movement, and the 
sensitiveness, which belong to the popular idea of life ; we 
know that behind these characteristics, and of the first import- 
ance to a physiologist, though the world hardly realizes them, 
are cojuplex cheviical processes equally inseparable from proto- 
plasm, equally incapable of imitation in the laboratory, and 
we know that when by analysis, living matter is killed (broken 
down) and then investigated, certain bodies are always present. 
This knowledge, although in one sense limited, is of the 
highest value, for it is our guide in examining the nature, the 
importance, and the fate of Foods. 

The bodies which are always found when "living substance" 
is thus examined after death are : 

{a) Proteids^, which, as we know, are nitrogen-holdings 
and which contain besides the chemical elements, 
oxygen, hydrogen, carbon (this very abundantly), 
and sulphur (in varying, but small amount), often 
phosphorus, and sometimes iron. 

if) Salts. These are various in nature ; common salt 
or chloride of sodium is a familiar example and 
very generally present, but it must not be forgotten 
that carbonates and phosphates often occur. 

{c) Water. This is always present, forming about 
three-quarters of the total weight. 

In the great majority of animals and plants, and in man, 
we find : 

(d) Carbohydrates, holding the elements carbon, hydro- 
gen, and oxygen. 

^ This term is used as synonymous with "• siibstance which lives?'' 

2 After evaporating the water from a proteid the residue contains 

(roughly) about \ carbon, \ oxygen, \ nitrogen, and ^V hydrogen by 

weight. 



CHAP. VI.] Foodstuffs. 6y 

(e) Fats ; these also hold the elements carbon, hydro- 
gen, oxygen, but in proportions and arrangement 
different from those which obtain in the carbo- 
hydrates. 

Of these bodies the carbohydrates, fats and proteids 
(notably the proteids), are highly complex in composition ; 
they are represented in the daily waste of a man by the 
simpler substances named above, — urea in the urine, and 
carbonic acid in the breath. And, as we have seen, there is 
daily loss of water and of salts. If food is to repair this waste 
it must consist of the complex bodies thus broken down by 
the chemical changes of daily life, or of substance which can 
be built into these -bodies. Now the building-up power or 
constructive power of living beings varies greatly^; a green 
plant yields proteids, fats, and carbohydrates upon analysis, 
but does not feed upon them : in the sunlight it builds them 
up indirectly or directly from simpler substances. But a man 
cannot thus build up, and the food which is supplied to him 
day by day must contain the more complex bodies. The last 
stage of construction is, however, performed by man 
and all living things; protoplasm (that is, living sub- 
stance) given as food, is killed in the consumption ; and 
thus converted into dead proteids with admixture of other 
bodies; the annexation of dead substance to make 
living substance is the work of living substance and 
of that alone. But, apart from this final step, the construc- 
tive power of man is, as we have said, slight, from a chemical 
point of view, and we find that he is most efficiently nourished 
when proteids^ fa^s, carbohydrates, satts and water, form con- 
stituents of his daily food. 

The Proteids must not be grouped together indiscrimin 
ately. There are, it is true, certain points of behaviour (or 

^ See above, § i. 



68 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

reactions) in which all proteids are alike, but there are others 
which divide them into groups, — not without interest to the 
cook or nurse. Thus, many proteids dissolve in water (native 
albumens, albumoses, peptones) ; others will not dissolve unless 
some neutral salt be present (globulins) or unless the solution 
be acid (acid albumen) or alkaline (alkali albumen). Again, 
many proteids are changed by the action of heat so as to 
become more insoluble, — practically more indigestible, — and 
among these are albumens and globulins ; others can be 
heated unthoiit losing digestibility^ — this is true of acid and 
alkali albumen, of peptones, and of albumoses. Lastly, some 
proteids are especially complex, being bound up with some 
substafice ivhich is not a proteid; in ox-gall and in the secretion 
from many salivary glands a complex body of this nature is 
found, but not used as food ; the casein of milk, however, 
forms another and somewhat different example, and is, of 
course, highly valued for purposes of feeding. We will speak 
presently of the different articles of diet which are rich in one 
or more or many proteids ; this brief statement will serve to 
show that different members of the group (and there- 
fore different proteid-holding foods) need different 
treatment if their full nutritive value is to be realized^ 
The Carbohydrates are familiar as starch, dextrin, and 
the various sugars. To these may possibly be added cellulose; 
it is a carbohydrate, but, for man at least, a doubtful food. If, 
including it, we arrange the members of this group in de- 
creasing order of solubility, the series runs thus; cellulose, 
starch, the dextrins, the sugars. For solubility we may without 
great inaccuracy read digestibility ; thus, cellulose is acted 
upon by none of the digestive fluids of the human alimentary 
canal ; raw starch is almost equally refractory, and boiled 
starch, incapable of absorption as starch, is changed to 
sugar by action of the saliva and pancreatic juice. Dextrin 

^ The substance gelatine which is allied to proteids will be treated of 
later. See below, § 28. 



CHAP. VI.] Foodstuffs. 69 

is to be regarded as on the way to sugar, and the sugars 
themselves are probably fit for absorption with very slight 
digestive change, or none. 

We notice that among the carbohydrates (as in the case of 
the proteids) for absorption from the alimentary canal, and 
probably, later, for transport through the body, relatively 
insoluble bodies are made soluble by the action of the 
digestive organs. In various regions of animals and plants we 
meet with members of these groups which may be called in- 
soluble, — the abundant starch of plants, the glycogen of the 
human liver, many of the proteids of almost all cells. But 
these bodies are not taken in or passed on as such, but at 
times of transport have been changed to allied bodies of high 
solubility. This is seen clearly when we recall the physiology 
of digestion. Of the proteids named above the albiinwses and 
peptones are the most soluble, and they alone of proteids 
are diffusible\ And, as we know, it is albumoses and 
peptones which are formed abundantly by peptic digestion in 
the stomach and by the action of pancreatic juice in the 
intestine. The albuminates too (this word includes acid albu- 
men and alkali albumen) are capable of being absorbed, and 
they are formed in digestion. And it is clear that dextrin 
and the sugars — mainly the latter - form the goal of digestive 
change on starch. 

The Fats of food are either {a) present in the tissues in 
which they have been laid down in life and thus enclosed in 
the cells of these tissues, or {b) they are taken out or extracted, 
running together into irregular masses of large size, or (c) more 
rarely kept apart as small, separate globules. In suet, to a 
certain extent in cooked meat, in most nuts (eaten raw), and 
in the diseased pate de fate gj'as, the fat is in the first con- 
dition; in dripping, butter, the oils, it is extracted without 

1 It would be out of place here to la}^ stress upon the small differences 
which exist between albumoses and peptones. 



70 Domestic Economy. [PT. i. 

subsequent mechanical splitting up : and milk is the most 
familiar example of natural fine division, that is, of an emulsion. 
The chemical form in which fat is usually eaten in Europe is 
that of neutral fats, which may be compared very roughly 
with complex oxides. But under certain conditions (and as 
we know during pancreatic digestion) these change, splitting up 
into the substance glycerine and free fatty acids. As any acid, 
meeting with a base, unites with it to form a salt — and that this 
is true we know from the most elementary study of chemistry — 
so the fatty acids combine with bases when these occur 
suitably. But in this case the resulting salt has a special 
name, — it is called a soap., and it is soluble (e.g. sodium) or 
insoluble (e.g. lead) according to the nature of the base which 
has helped to form it. Thus we may, and in the intestine we 
do, deal with neutral fats, with fatty acids, and with soaps. 
The exact chemical form in which fat is best suited for 
absorption has not been clearly settled by experiment, but 
there seems evidence that soaps and the fatty acids are es- 
pecially concerned. If this is so, we have (as in the case of 
the other foods) digestive action leading up to absorp- 
tion, by chemical change. 

The variation in melting point which characterizes different 
fats is among their most striking physical features. A piece of 
lard swallowed by a frog may be found, later, in the intestme 
— partially digested indeed, but with a residue of unchanged 
consistency. The same substance soon becomes fluid in the 
stomach of the warm-blooded animal, man, whereas we may 
gather that the wax of a bee's honeycomb passes unmelted 
through the human intestine, since it is solid up to a tem- 
perature of 63° C. It is, on the whole, characteristic of 
vegetable fats that they have lower melting points than the 
fats obtained from animals, and this has perhaps been asso- 
ciated with the use of the term oil in speaking of them ; but 
a series arranged with regard to melting points, shows a cer- 
tain admixture of the products of animals and plants, for 



CHAP. VI.] Foodstuffs. 71 

animal fats differ widely among themselves. The fat of mutton 
is hard, — but it is fluid during the Hfe of the sheep, and 
practically all fats, or mixtures of them, which are important 
constituents of the food of man are fluid at the temperature of 
the human stomach. 

Not only are the fats of food melted during digestion, but 
they are also emulsified. Sometimes the natural emulsion, 
milk, is part of food, sometimes artificial emulsions are eaten. 
Among them are such sauces as mayonnaise^ Ho/landaise, and 
such prepared nutrients as Cremor hordeatus or some forms 
of cod-liver oil. But, in the food of the healthy, the fat 
(butter, cheese, fat of meat, nuts) is relatively massive, and it is 
the work of the pancreatic juice (in the presence of small 
amounts of fatty acids) to break up these massive irregular 
drops into minute particles, forming a sort of cream. In past 
years it was believed that this creamy mass of (chiefly) neutral 
fats was taken up as such by the mobile cells of the intestinal 
walls : we have said above that recent work points to chemical 
change before absorption, — change to fatty acids and further, 
to soaps. But even in this event the emulsification is of great 
importance, for all chemical change is carried out more readily, 
more thoroughly., if the body changed is in a state of minute 
division. 

SaUne Matters or Salts form part of every natural diet, 
and an animal, deprived of them by careful artificial treatment, 
dies. The term salts is popularly associated with mineral 
compounds ; and indeed chloride of sodium and phosphates of 
lime and of sodium play especially important parts in the 
chemistry of the living body. Such inorganic salts are some- 
times eaten uncombined with articles of food, and merely 
accompanying them : — ^we know that the great majority of 
dishes are served with sodium chloride as an ingredient or 
an addition. But the action of the saline matter is more 
effective when it forms an integral part of food. Instances of 
this union will be given later (§ 47), but we may here recall 



J 2 ' Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

the fact that milk and yolk of egg are rich in litne — a substance 
all-important for the healthy growth of young animals. On 
the other hand peas, white of egg, and potatoes are poor in 
lime, but they hold much potash, — or at any rate combined 
potassium. 

But, besides these inorganic salts\ organic salts and 
organic compounds having some mineral constituent must be 
reckoned with. Experiment and observation have shown that 
they are needful, although the exact share taken by them in 
the chemical changes of life is yet undiscovered. Thus, iron 
is indispensable to proper nourishment, and it is most readily 
absorbed and assimilated in such complex combination as we 
find in beef, in yolk of egg, and in some vegetables. And 
many fresh fruits are rich in organic acids or salts. 

In a certain sense, Water must be separated from the 
foodstuffs here considered, and yet, in importance, it is second 
to none. We must remember that the constant loss of sweat 
from the surface of the body is the evaporation of a watery 
solution, that all waste matter which leaves the human kidney 
is in watery solution, that the air bearing waste matters from 
the lungs is loaded with watery vapour, and that water is 
always mixed with the waste from the intestine (faeces) 
although its amount varies. Remembering this, we shall not 
wonder that water must be taken abundantly, either alone or 
mixed in various ways with food. Some facts concerning this 
admixture we shall speak of later ; here it may suffice to 
remember that fiiiids form the medium of all chemical i?iter- 
change, and that, to water falls the important task of being a 
first essential in the formation of such media in the human 
body. 

^ See above, § ri. 



CHAP, vl] Foodstuffs. 73 

§ 24. Table of Foodstuffs mentioned in the fore- 
going PARAGRAPHS. 

Proteids 

contain Carbon, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Hydrogen, and Sulphur; often 
Phosphorus. Traces of salts are commonly found with them, 

I. Native albiujiens. Soluble in water, solutions coagulated 

by heat. 

II. Globidins. Insoluble in water, soluble in solutions of 

neutral salts, such as sodium chloride^ viagnesiiim 
sulphate ; solutions coagulated by heat. 

III. Casein. Compound p?'oteid, containing a substance or 

residue which cannot be digested in the stomach. 
Insoluble in water ; soluble in dilute saline solu- 
tions and dilute alkalis ; not coagulated by heat. 

IV. Albuminates. Acid and alkali albumen ; soluble respec- 

tively in dilute acid and alkaline solutions ; solu- 
tions not coagulated by heat. 

V. Albumoses and PeptoTies. Diffusible .^ especially the peptones. 

Soluble in water; solutions not coagulated by heat. 

VI. Coagulated proteids. Produced by the action of heat on 

albumens and globulins. Insoluble in water, in 
salt solutions, in dilute solutions of acid and alkali. 
Soluble in gastric juice and pancreatic juice and 
changed by these fluids to albumoses and peptones. 

Of these groups of proteids /, //, III are found in the living 
animals or in their secretions ; IV and V are for??ied in the 
course of digestion ; VI is formed artificially by heat and is the 
most insoluble form of proteid. 

Carbohydrates 

contain Carbon, Hydrogen, and Oxygen, the two latter elements being 
here (and in a few substances which are not carbohydx'ates) in the propor- 
tions in which they exist in water. 



74 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

I. Cellulose^ forms the cell-wall or protecting membrane of 

most plant cells. Insoluble in all the digestive 
fluids of man ; dissolved and changed by action of 
certain bacteria and by certain ferments found by 
plant cells. 

II. Staixh. Insoluble in cold water ; swells in boiling water 

to form mucilaginous fluid or jelly ; changed by 
ferments of saliva and pancreatic juice to dextrins 
and sugar (maltose). 

III. Dextrin. Soluble in cold and hot water, solution clear. 

Dextrins are intermediate bodies formed in change 
of starch to sugar. Very like the glycogen of the 
liver. 

IV. Sugar. Very soluble in hot and cold water ; solution 

clear and sweet. Many sugars known ; they are 
found plentifully in nature, especially in plants. 
Carbohydrates are absorl)ed as sugar froin alimentary 
cafial. 

Fats 

contain Carbon, Hydrogen and Oxygen, combined and arranged 
difterently from the carbohydrate combinations. 

I. Neutral fats. Insoluble in hot and cold water ; solid at 

temperatures which vary for different fats. Form 
e?nulsion (a creamy liquid; when broken into 
minute particles, e.g. by alkali. 

II. Fatty acids. Formed by splitting up of neutral fats with 

separation of glycerine. This is one action of 
digestion in small intestine. 

III. Soaps. Formed by union of fatty acids with some base. 

Are salts, soluble or insoluble according to nature 
of base. This is one action of digestion in small 
intestine. 

Fats are absorbed as fatty acids and as soaps ; possibly as 
emulsified neutral fats. 



CHAP. VI.] Foodstuffs. 75 



The action of Foodstuffs in nourishing the body. 

§ 25. We have thus gained some idea of the raw materials 
which, in the shape of food, are placed at the disposal of the 
body in order that this body may build itself up and repair 
waste. And we may now go a step further, asking the ques- 
tion, "How are these raw materials used by living substance?" 
In the body, as we have seen, proteids, fafs, carbohydrates, satis 
and water are always present ; do the proteids of the food form 
the body proteids ? do the fats of food give rise to fats, and the 
carbohydrates to glycogen or some sugar-like substance? To 
answer this question fully we should have to go beyond the 
limits which are suitable here ; we must be content (as a partial 
answer) to consider what is indicated by the chemical constitu- 
tion of the foodstuffs, and to name some of the results of long- 
continued and careful experiments in physiology. 

From a chemical point of view fats and carbohydrates, either 
alone or combined with each other, cannot give rise to proteid, 
for they are without the element nitrogen. Proteids, on the 
other hand, hold all the elements which fats and carbohydrates 
contain; therefore they can, so far as their actual elementary 
composition is concerned, act as the source of both these simpler 
compounds. 

The results of experitnents support the conclusions which 
these facts lead us to draw. 

{a) In the first place, it is found that proteid foodstuffs 
can give rise within the body to proteids, carbohydrates and 
fats. It is easy to believe that the nitrogen of the body- 
proteids is derived from the nitrogen of proteid food, but it 
has been shown also that, on proteid diet, there may be storage 
of the starch-like glycogen of the liver and also formation of 
fat. A good illustration of the last-named action is found in 
the fact that a mother, nursing her child, gives milk richer 



^6 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

in cream — which is mainly fat— when she is supplied with 
abundance of proteid in her food. And in certain forms of 
the disease diabetes, in which sugar is excreted in large 
quantities by the urine, it has been shown that this sugar must 
be derived from the breaking down of some nitrogenous 
substance. 

{b) In the second place, it is found that an animal dies 
when fed on fats and carbohydrates without proteids. 

But carbohydrates can and do give rise to fat in the 
body, and we are familiar with the change in daily life. For 
potatoes (because of the large quantities of starch they contain) 
are one of the first articles forbidden by a doctor to a patient 
who is too fat ; and again, bees form abundant fat (wax) from 
food which is chiefly sugar. 

It has not been clearly shown that food-fats give rise to 
body-carbohydrates ; it is proved that the fat of food under- 
goes or may undergo a change to form some different fat 
which is characteristic of the tissues of the animal consuming 
it. Thus, in ordinary farm feeding, the fat of oil-cake does 
not reappear in the milk and the tissues of the cattle fed upon 
it ; and the fat of a man is unlike the fat of a dog, even when 
both are fed upon the same fatty food. 

§ 26. In shaping a diet which involves determination of 
quantities, there are other important experimental results to 
be considered besides the mere chemical changes which are 
possible to foodstuffs. 

ia) In the first place, a diet in which proteids are 
used to the exclusion of fats and carbohydrates, is a 
most extravagant diet from the physiological point 
of view. A certain amount of carbon is demanded by the 
body daily to make good the daily waste of this element ; in 
order to gain this from proteids alone, so much must be eaten 
and changed chemically, that at the same time far more 



CHAP. VI.] Foodstuffs. 77 

nitrogen is eaten than is needed, and there is uncalled-for 
nitrogenous waste, which may even be accompanied by serious 
disturbance of health. Further, it is found that proteid food 
makes the total chemical change which is constantly 
going on in a man's body more active; we might almost 
say the livhig subsfance lives faster. This is sometimes a change 
for the better ; thus, great stoutness may be due to sluggish 
chemical processes in which ^^Z" is formed and laid down, rather 
than the more complex protoplasmic substance. And in such 
cases a healthful reduction of fat may be brought about by 
abundant proteid in the diet, as in the system known as 
" Banting," or as in the more modern " Salisbury treatment." 
But if there is not this unhealthy stoutness ; if a man is main- 
taining his weight, and is in good muscular and respiratory 
condition, then increase of the total chemical changes of his 
body (increased metabolism) is harmful rather than a 
benefit. 

{b) In the second place, there can be no doubt 
that the fats and carbohydrates are invaluable as 
subsidiaries in the chemical changes of the tissues, 
although they cannot play the part of principals. They are rich 
in carbon, and we remember how much the daily waste matters 
of the body are carbon-holding. A tissue so characteristically 
nitrogenous as are the voluntary muscles, has abundant non- 
nitrogenous waste-products {carbonic acid., lactic acid, wate?'), 
and it is these which are notably increased when a muscle 
works hard. 

Further, the non-nitrogenous foodstuffs have this property, 
that they check or lessen the chemical changes in 
proteids: in other words, they spare nitrogenous waste; the 
tissiies, we may say, live more slowly. And this in times of 
health is a valuable economy. Sometimes indeed the life of 
the tissues is already too sluggish, for example, in such dis- 
ordered conditions of the body (referred to above) as lead to 



78 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

excessive stoutness. To give a diet of fats and carbohydrates 
here would be most unsuitable ; the foodstuffs which are 
needed are such as will excite thorough chemical change, so 
that the substance of the cells makes itself (i.e. protoplasm) 
out of the raw material offered, and does not halt at any " half- 
way house " of fat-formation. 

But on the whole, although, in the history of animals, the 
first digestion was probably proteid, there can be little doubt 
that a diet in which nitrogenous and non-nitrogenous 
foodstuffs are mixed is the "happy mean" physiologi- 
cally for man. When it is given, the digestive juices are 
taxed in fair proportion, the ferments acting upon starches, 
proteids, and fats, all having materials on which they can act : 
at the same time, no excretory organs are taxed unduly. 
Under certain conditions it may be most desirable to let one 
substance or another come to the front in diet, either because 
one digestive organ is weak, or because the chemical changes 
of the whole body (and we must remember that to these 
changes the formation and maintenance of the different tissues 
is due) have run riot in some way and need the checking 
which unusual food can bring about. And infancy, extreme 
old age, and sickness all need special arrangements of food ; 
it must be remembered that here we are intentionally 
leaving aside these states, and dealing only with the healthy 
adult. 

In speaking of the role of non-nitrogenous foodstuffs we 
have not discriminated between the fats and carbohydrates, 
and it may be asked, " Is it a matter of indifference whether 
either or both be introduced into diet?" Within limits, they 
can replace each other, and each has its special drawbacks and 
advantages. A given weight of fats is more useful to the 
body, — can be used more economically in its chemical changes 
than can the same weight of carbohydrates ; on the other hand, 
fats are somewhat difficult of digestion. Carbohydrates are 



CHAP. VI.] Foodstuffs. 79 

easier to digest and they are cheaper, commercially. We must 
probably look upon the most satisfactory diet as that which 
contains a mixture of the two. 



§ 27. The question of the exact fate of the salts and 
water of diet is, in some ways, more difficult than that w^e 
have just been considering ; it is indeed too difficult for long 
discussion here. But one or two points may be borne in mind. 

{a) In the first place we must realize that all the tissues 
of the body are wet; that is to say, that water is present in 
varying amounts, but generally forming about three-quarters 
of the total weight of the tissue. 

{b) In the second place all foods contain water. That 
this varies, and how it varies, we shall see in succeeding para- 
graphs, but w^e may mention here that in what is called dry 
oat7neal, 15 parts out of 100 are water, and that 8 parts in 100 
are found in Itiitter — a food which seems almost purely fatty. 
As we might expect, the water present in raw meat is more 
abundant: in lean l?ee/ there are about 74 parts in 100; in 
white fish 78 in 100 parts. 

But, apart from this water, taken half unconsciously with 
food, much is drunk as hot or cold water, and in various made 
beverages. This has i?nporta?it special action. It calls forth 
peristaltic movements of the intestines (i.e. the move- 
ments which shift the contents of the bowel and pass undi- 
gested matters towards the lower opening) and thus helps 
digestion, while it checks constipation. It also acts as what is 
known as a diuretic, bringing about more vigorous action of 
the kidney, and greater flow of urine, and so helping the 
discharge of important waste matter. Probably the intestinal 
movements are quickened more by cold water than by hot 
water or tea, — almost any hot drink has the diuretic property — 
and such hot fluids also tend to the formation of sweat. We 



8o Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

know that the temperature of a healthy man remains fairly 
constant, and further that all the small blood vessels of his 
body are in more or less close connection by means of delicate 
nerves. When much hot fluid is introduced into the body 
there is (through the action of these nerves) a flushing of the 
blood vessels of the skin — so that hurtful rise of the tempera- 
ture of the body generally is avoided — and with this flushing 
there may be marked outpouring of sweat, and thus further 
increase in the discharge of waste matter, and further reduction 
of temperature by evaporation. 

The action of saline drinks is aperient ; it has been 
mentioned above, § 20. 

Of the salts we may say briefly that, as all tissues of the 
body, when analysed, show saline matter among their ingre- 
dients, so we can hardly find the article of food which is 
absolutely salt-free. But there are certain parts of the body 
where the presence of salts is very marked and of great import- 
ance, — we may instance all bony matter, and the red colouring 
matter of the blood, which is indeed an organic compound, but 
is iron-holding. And to meet the special needs of such tissues, 
pressing above all times during growth, there must be choice 
of special food in which the suitable salts or elements abound. 
Thus a large part of the saline matter which makes bones 
strong and rigid is phosphate of time, and milk is distinguished 
by its richness in lime; it is on this account, among others pre- 
eminently the food for the very young. 

§ 28. There are two substances which have been merely 
mentioned in the foregoing pages, and upon which we should 
yet dwell briefly, as they are very commonly present in articles 
of food. The one is Gelatine, a body not truly a proteid, but 
yet allied to proteid, and nitrogen-holding ; the other is Cellu- 
lose, a member of the groups of carbohydrates. 



CHAP. VI.] Foodstuffs. 8 1 

Gelatine in Food. 

In its extracted form, extracted for example from calves' 
feet, or prepared commercially from other animal substances, 
Gelatine is familiar to most housewives; as are its properties 
of setting to a jelly in the cold, of becoming liquid when 
warmed, and of remaining uncoagulated when greatly heated. 
It may, by boiling, be extracted from all conjiective tissue, from 
bone, and from cartilage; the veal-stock or beef-tea which 
"sets" on cooling has been prepared from meat rich in con- 
nective tissue {tendon or sineiii) or from young bone, and it is 
the gristly or cartilaginous character of the calves' feet which 
makes them a rich source of gelatine. What is the value of 
this gelatine in diet ? Is it a true food ? 

Gelatine cajinot act as a proteid ; it cannot build up tissue ; 
indeed an animal which received all its nitrogen in the form of 
gelatine would first draw upon its own nitrogenous tissues, and 
would presently die. But, on the other hand, it has a distinct 
value as -an economiser of proteid. We have said above that the 
non-nitrogenous foodstuffs act as "sparers" of the chemical 
changes in proteid ; the action of gelatine is Hke theirs, but 
more powerful, so that an animal will thrive on a diet which 
does not hold much proteid, when gelatine is eaten at the same 
time, although the proteid cannot be removed altogether. 

Besides having this direct value, gelatine is often the means 
through which some food or stimulant is given ; — food such as 
meat-juice, fruit-juice, sugar, or cream; — stimulant such as 
brandy or wine, or extractives of meat. 

Lastly, it may be regarded as a pleasant accompaniment to 
solid food in various preparations of aspic. 

Cellulose iji Food. 

We know that, in the human alimentary canal, starch is 

turned to sugar by ferment action. A ferment having this 

power is formed by the cells of the salivary glands and then 

poured into the mouth, and a similar ferment is formed by the 

B. 6 



82 Domestic Economy, [PT. I. 

cells of the pancreas, whence it reaches the intestine. This 
ferment has no power on the more insoluble carbohydrate, 
cellulose ; indeed there is no ferment formed by the gland-cells 
of 7nan which can dissolve it. Yet cellulose is largely eaten 
by man. All vegetable cells, all fruit cells are clothed by 
cellulose or by some substance allied to it or derived from it, 
which may be even more difficult to dissolve. Its fate then 
is a matter of interest ; is it, we may ask, useless matter — the 
inevitable but inconvenient load of true food ? 

id) This question can be answered in the negative. In 
the first place some living matter is capable of forming a 
ferment which acts upon cellulose — the living matter of certain 
plant cells. The living matter of certain bacteria^ either by 
means of a ferment, or directly, also has this solvent power. 
Now these bacteria are found in the intestines of probably all 
mammals, and there is evidence that to them is due the dis- 
appearance of cellulose which certainly does take place in 
human digestion. This disappearance is only partial at the 
best, and varies much in extent ; the products of solution are 
not simply sugars but more complex, and, it is safe to say, less 
nutritious; still it must be remembered that not all the 
cellulose eaten is cast out unchanged, and that the 
agents which bring about change in a part of it are 
in one sense foreign inhabitants of the intestine. 

ib) But in the second place the cellulose which is not 
digested has a use zvhich is probably of high iniportance. It 
stimulates mechanically the walls of the intestine, helping those 
wave-like movements which we have learned to call peristaltic, 
and which shift the food that it may be thoroughly exposed to 
the ferments present and that, when its nutritive matter is used 
up, it may be passed to the exterior. The intestines of animals 
who feed differently have different characteristics : thus, flesh- 
eaters have a notably short intestine ; on the other hand 
herbivora (grass-eaters) have a very long intestine, and to them, 



CHAP. VI.] Foodstuffs. 83 

the stimulus of cellulose is all-important. Man, intermediate 
in the character of his food, has an intestine of intermediate 
length, but the removal of cellulose from his diet has generally 
to be met by special treatment. It is well known that in 
carrying out the " Salisbury " cure (in which one aim is the 
digestion of proteid food) some sort of aperient is often used, 
and equally well known to doctors is the aperient action of 
brown bread, porridge, and other foods rich in " indigestible " 
cell walls. 

We have just said that many plant cells do form a ferment 
or ferments which dissolve cellulose. These ferments do not 
continue their action after such cells are eaten by animals, but 
before this point they have in some cases produced an effect 
which has especial interest for the cook. The term pectine 
has been used to indicate a substance or substances which 
may be yielded by ripe fruits, substances which in hot water 
are liquid (form a solution), but, in the cold, set to a jelly, and 
which form the ground-work of the true fruit jellies with 
which we are familiar. And these substances, pectine and its 
near allies, probably spring from change in the very insoluble 
carbohydrates of the cell walls of various fruits. The change 
is not a simple one, and to discuss its exact nature would be 
out of place here. But we may remember that while the gela- 
tine of animal tissues is nearly aUied to the proteids, the bodies 
which in plants most resemble it physically (i.e. which are 
liquid in the warm and set to a jelly in the cold) are non- 
nitrogenous derivatives of the abundant carbohydrates of the 
cell walls, and are derived from them, when the conditions are 
suitable, by special ferment action. We have seen that gelatine 
is of real value in itself as sparing the proteid waste in the 
body ; the exact value of pectine has not been found, but it is 
very probably valuable in the same fashion - whatever that 
may be — as are salts and organic acids. Therefore, in thought, 
we should associate it with them physiologically, rather than 
with the proteids, carbohydrates, or fats. 

6—2 



84 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

Summary. 

§ 29. It may be helpful to gather together briefly the most 
important points which have been dealt with in the foregoing 
paragraphs. 

{a) We have seen that a diet of non-tiitrogenous foodstuffs 
only zvoidd starve the body. For there is a daily waste of 
nitrogen — a loss which they cannot repair. 

ifi) On the other hand we have seen that proteid foodstuffs 
can be used as the sole food of the body^ repairing both nitrogenous 
and non-nitrogenous waste. 

{c) But lastly we have seen that such a proteid diet ivould 
be a physiological extravagance — a waste of nitrogenous material 
for the adult who is healthy— a regime often accompanied by 
injurious consequences. 

{d) Thus we are led to regard as best for such an adult 
a mixed diet, a diet which is, moreover, never destitute of 
salts and of water, aftd has its due proportion of insoluble 
material such as cellulose and ivoody fibre. 

§ 30. The question which naturally follows on these con- 
clusions is this : " How do we gain such a diet from the foods 
at our disposal ? What foodstuffs belong to various articles of 
diet ? " The answer to this question forms the subject of the 
next chapter. But before turning to deal with it we may say a 
word upon one of the most widespread misapprehensions which 
is betrayed by students of elementary dietetics. This is the 
ready use of the terms " tissue-formers " and " heat-producers " 
to indicate respectively proteids on the one hand, and fats 
with carbohydrates on the other. 

How are tissues formed in the body ? They are formed by 
their own activity from food ; and this food, while it is neces- 
sarily proteid, is faulty unless it contains carbohydrates and 
fats as well. Moreover the waste of muscles is very largely 



CHAP. VI.] Foodstuffs. 85 

non-nitrogenous and, we may infer, so is the waste of other 
tissues which are less readily examined. Nitrogenous waste 
does always occur, but it would seem to be spared by 
supplies of non-nitrogenous food ; and when muscles work 
especially hard the nitrogenous waste is very little in- 
creased, but there is much greater discharge of water, 
of carbonic acid, and of sarcolactic acid. 

JIoio is heat produced in the twdy ? Briefly, by any kind of 
tnefal)olism or chemical change. Hut the active seats of chemi- 
cal change are the tissues, and the tissues are protoplasmic, i.e. 
nitrogenous. And protoplasm cannot be built up without 
proteids, though fats and carbohydrates may be most important 
aids. iVIetabolic action, chemical change, is nowhere more 
active than in the muscles, the glands, the nervous tissues of 
the body. We cannot separate from them our conception of 
the physiological heat producers ; we cannot separate their 
existence and well-being from the taking in of proteid food. 

These statements are brief and apparently dogmatic, but 
almost every one could be supported by evidence drawn from 
the careful work of many physiologists. They may just indi- 
cate (and more than this they cannot do) the complexity which 
does belong to the nutrition of the body ; I should be glad to 
think they could check the easy use of half-understood tech- 
nical expressions. The division of foods into tissue formers 
and heat producers had a meaning to the great physiological 
chemist who first made the distinction ; the ter\ns have a 
meaning still for the expert, but a meaning which the work of 
recent vrars has tended to make more complex and less clear- 
cut. \m\ it would be a great gain if their general use at the 
hands of those who are not chemical or physiological experts 
could become a thing of the past; if we were content to 
describe foodstuffs in terms which their constitution teaches 
us, and nrn to prejudge the hard quer-^n of their role in the 
chemistry of life. 



"^m 



S6 [PT, I. 



CHAPTER VII. 

The Constituents of Food. 

§ 31. In the last chapter we learnt that certain foodstuffs 
must be present in the food of man if he is to live healthily; 
we have still to learn how food may be chosen intelligently. 
The knowledge which should help in this choice is really to 
be gathered from the information we have already acquired, 
together with further facts brought out in the following chapter, 
for we must know in the first place how the different foodstuffs 
are distributed aiiiong^ or contained in^ different raw articles 0/ 
/ood^ and in the second place how these articles of food are 
affected by cooking or by other preparation for the table. 

Nevertheless as preliminary to both these divisions of the 
subject, we may say that no one diet can be described as a 
perfect diet for mankind. Bodies of similar composition have 
to be m/iintained by food in widely different regions of the 
world and under different conditions of wear and tear; and, 
partly from choice, partly from the necessities of the situation, 
the diet of man is now animal, now vegetable, someti.nes taken 
in the raw state, more often prepared for eating by some 
process of cookery. That all these varieties of diet are of 
equal value we cannot pretend ; their economy (in a physio- 
logical sense) is very varying, but what we shalj see is that 
similar combinat''^^'^ » of foodstuffs may be drawn from 
different sources. It may be urged further that as the same 
food is not appropriate to the infancy, the manhood, and the 



CHAP. VII.] The Constituents of Food. 87 

old age of a man, so, when many adult men are gathered 
together and fed upon similar daily rations these rations do not 
meet the needs of each individual with equal success. When 
a group of persons are clothed in ready-made clothing, those 
persons who diverge most widely from the mean size show 
a misfit most clearly, and, in the same way — though the fact is 
less readily appreciable — there must be many " misfits " in a 
common diet such as that of a prison, of an army, of an 
orphanage, or of a ship. These diets may be chosen with 
great care, but we can hardly look on them as in each case the 
best for each of the many individuals who share them. We 
would not, then, prescribe a diet, but rather give the data from 
which intelligent individuals may shape a diet. To this end 
we will here consider the foodstuffs in order, saying something 
about the various foods in which they are found and the 
condition in which they are found. For like constituents are 
present in different parts of plants and animals in different 
proportions; liver and kidney, for example, are unlike fat 
bacon; the seed of a pea is unlike the pod or the leaf; and, 
while milk is the source of cheese and butter, it dififers widely 
from both in food contents. 



88 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

Proteids. 
A. Proteids in animal substances. 

§ 32. We will take as a point of departure a well-known 
proteid-holding animal food, namely lean deef, and consider its 
composition. It is, as we know, the flesh (that is, the muscles) 
of the ox, made up of bundles of muscular fibres of the variety 
known as striated, and each of these fibres possesses its own 
protoplasmic substance and nuclei, and is bounded by a 
delicate sheath of somewhat different composition. The 
separate muscular fibres, and, again, the bundles of these fibres, 
are held together by connective tissue which has no power of 
contraction ; this tissue varies in amount, — thus rump-steak 
has very little of it, but all sinewy meat has much. Running 
in the connective tissue are the blood vessels and nerves of 
the muscle, abundant in number but not important in bulk ; 
and we must not forget that much blood with lymph is still 
clinging to the muscular fibres, although much has been lost 
in the process of " cutting up " the ox. When fat is present 
it is stored between the fibres of muscle and in the con- 
nective tissue, but for the moment we are considering lean beef. 

With this characteristic structure we find a certain charac- 
teristic chemical constitution bound up : 

(a) About 75 parts by weight in 100 parts of uncooked 
beef are water. 

{b) About 20 parts by weight are made up of nitro- 
genous substance. This, though nearly all proteid, is not 
pure proteid ; it includes the connective tissue, of which 
mention h? ^en made, and which, on heating in moist heat, 
yields ^(^e' it includes also certain nitrogenous bodies 

whirr. ' ing from chemical changes in the proteids 

and ? spoken of collectively as nitrogenous ex- 

tract 



CHAP. VII.] The Constituents of Food. 89 

When we examine the composition of human muscle carefully we 
find that it is as follows. In loo parts there are : 

Water 73-5 parts. 

Proteids . . . . . . . i8"02 

Gelatine ....... i -99 

Extractives nitrogenous and non-nitrogenous ^^1 

Inorganic salts . . . . . . 3'i2 

Fat . . . . . . . . 2*27 

It will be seen that the error introduced by grouping the gelatine and 
nitrogenous extractives with the proteids proper, is not great. And we 
shall group them thus in the analyses of foods which follow, unless special 
statements to the contrary are made. 

{c) The most important proteids in beef belong to the 
group of the globulins. It will be remembered then that they 
do not dissolve in pure water, but that they do dissolve in 
solutions of neutj'al salts (e.g. common salt), and also that 
they coagulate or become more insoluble (indigestible) on 
heating (§23). 

{d) Salts are present, between i p. c. and 2 p. c. 

It has been found that lean beef, eaten raw, is digested in 
about 2 hours, and the digestion of its proteids is almost com- 
plete. Complete digestion is hardly known in the alimentary 
canal of man, but, in the case of raw beef, only 2 J parts by 
weight in 100 are passed from the bowel unabsorbed. 

Cooked beef is digested less quickly, needing from 2^ to 
4 hours, but the residue need hardly be greater than with the 
raw substance. 

Briefly, beef must be looked upon as very nutritious and 
very digestible; it ranks high among proteid-holding foods. 
Eating it, we eat proteids which are for the most part made 
insoluble by heat, and which in the natural state do not 
dissolve in water but do dissolve in solutions of salts. Further, 
they are proteids which, in the beef, are associated or bound 
up with water and with very small amounts of salts. 



90 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

§ 33. These characters are possessed not by beef alone 
but by the muscular substance of great numbers of animals, 
and it is on this ground that we eat animal flesh so largely. 
Butcher's meat, poultry, game, fish, Crustacea (crabs, lobsters, 
prawns, etc.), molluscs (oysters, mussels, etc.) are different in 
small points from each other and from beef, different in the 
exact amount of water and proteids they contain, different now 
and then in the character of their proteids. But, in all, the 
water present amounts to between 70 and 80 parts p. c, the 
proteids to from about 18 to 22 parts p. c, and among these 
proteids globulins are found. The same may be said of heart- 
muscle and of tripe {stomach)^ in both of which the muscular 
fibres lack the delicate sheath which the fibres of voluntary 
muscle possess ; and the tojigue is another highly muscular 
article of diet in which the fibres (of the voluntary or striated 
type) are arranged in a curiously rectangular network which is, 
probably because of its arrangement, easy of access by the 
digestive fluids. 

We are also in the habit of eating certain other organs of 
the animal body, chiefly certain of the glands : among these 
are the liver and kidney, the thymus and pancreas (known as 
sweetbreads); while the brain, though hardly a staple article of 
diet^ is well known as occasional food. These are all non- 
muscular, but they are all distinctively nitrogenous — holding 
proteids, extractives and sometimes gelatine, and holding 
70 to 80 parts by weight of water in 100 parts. Among the 
proteids, globulins are always found, and often a com- 
pound proteid is present such as was described in 
§ 23. Of these organs the kidney, with its dense structure, is 
perhaps the least easy to digest, unless its preparation for the 
table is carefully carried out ; the liver and brain are more 
friable, more readily broken up, and in the pancreas a certain 
preparation for digestion may be bound up with traces of 
pancreatic juice (which moistens it), until the ferment is 
destroyed by cooking. 



CHAP. VII.] The CoiistiUients of Food. 91 

It is probable that, similarly, residues of digestive fluid 
increase the digestibility of those animals which, although 
eaten partly for their muscle, also contain a large and complex 
digestive gland. Such a gland is the so-called " liver " of the 
crab, in which however at the moment of eating the digestive 
ferments have been killed by cookery ; such too is the "liver" 
of molluscs, so that we can understand the superior digestibility 
of uncooked oysters. 

§ 34. We may now contrast with the lean beef, which 
formed our starting point in the consideration of animal foods 
rich in proteid, certain foods which are the 7iatural products of 
a7iimal life or are prepared artificially — and in this comparison 
we shall regard only the amount and characters of the proteids 
present. 

Of such foods, none is more familiar than milk. Milk 
varies a little in composition, according to the pasturing and 
condition of the cow, or other animal, from which it is drawn, 
but it is always more watery than beef (87 parts in 100 are 
water) and its total proteid contents do not generally amount 
to 4 parts in 100. Further, the proteids present are unlike 
those of beef; we do not find globulins (or only in very 
small amount); the coagulable proteid of milk is an 
albuitien (soluble in water, and becoming changed by heat) 
while the proteid casein— x^ox^ abundant in milk than albumen 
— belongs to the class of compound proteids which have 
been named above, and which may be described as 
especially rich in phosphorus. Casein is not made more 
insoluble by heat, but it is changed by the rennet ferment 
contained in the digestive fluid of the stomach, and " sets," or 
forms a clot which action of the pepsin dissolves. This 
clot, imprisoning the minute fat globules of milk, turns any 
quantity of milk in which it is found into an opaque jelly 
familiar to us as curd; and thus recalls the action of fibrin 
when it binds the red and white corpuscles into a jelly-like 
blood-clot. 



92 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

This peculiar action of the digestive fluid of the stomach 
upon milk lies at the root of all cheese-making, and we 
may look upon cheese as the rennet-clot of milk, condensed 
by drying under pressure, and changed by the action of 
certain bacteria (compare above, §3), and by the addition of 
flavourings and colouring-matter. This condensation gives a 
richly proteid food, one that contains about 30 parts by weight 
of proteid in 100, while in 100 parts only 34 are water; it is, 
however, a food which, as we shall see, is not highly digestible, 
although it is highly nutritive. 

When the clot of milk, which is destined to form cheese, 
shrinks or is crushed, the liquid squeezed out from it is known 
as ivhey. Whey holds much of the coagulable proteid of milk 
(but not the more important casein), together with the milk- 
sugar and milk-salts. But another artificial splitting up of milk 
has been carried out in late years, and carried out in such 
fashion that the fat and sugar on the one hand are separated 
from all the proteids on the other. Thus a flour-like patent 
food, the Prott7ie of commerce, has been prepared; a food 
which, it is claimed, supplies to those who eat it a very high 
percentage of proteid substance in a digestible form. It is 
stated that in 100 parts by weight of protene 80 parts of 
proteid are found ; it will be seen then, that even mixed with 
a sufficient quantity of water, or with wheat flour, or gelatine, 
for purposes of cooking, it yields articles of diet which are 
unusually rich in nitrogen-holding matter. 

We may look upon milk as a secretion of the animal body 
intended mainly to nourish young animals who are too helpless 
to find food for themselves. In eggs we find, not indeed the 
same consistency, not quite the same substances, but yet 
substances which are highly nourishing and which are used 
by immature (i.e. very young) animals during their growth. 
All eggs have to subserve this end, but it will be understood 
that they vary much in size and in structure ; thus, caviare^ the 



CHAP. VII.] The Constituents of Food. 93 

roe of the sturgeon^ is made up of multitudes of clustering eggs : 
and this is true of the hard roe of all fishes, however different 
in appearance and flavour. In using the word egg, however, 
we think naturally of the eggs of birds, and especially of the 
hen's egg, many millions of which are used daily in England. 
Taking this familiar egg as an example, we may say that in 
eggs there is less intermixture of foods than in milk (thus, 
no sugar is found), but nitrogenous matter is abundant. In 
the white of a hen's egg about 13 parts by weight in 100 are 
proteid and about 84 parts are water ; in the same weight of 
egg-yolk there are 16 parts by weight of proteid and about 50 
of water. The proteid matter of fresh eggs is different in nature 
according as the yolk or the white is examined ; in the former, 
there are globulins much resembling the main proteids of lean 
beef; in the latter, albumens (dissolving in water as well as 
in salt solutions) are present. Both these classes of proteids, 
it will be remembered, are greatly changed by the action of 
heat, and we shall see later that hardly any article of diet is 
more affected by different methods of cooking than is the egg. 

In all animals except those which are very simple — certainly 
in those which form staple articles of human food — blood is 
present, and must be looked on as a fluid rich in proteids, and 
formed by the cells of the body. The blood of the ox holds 
more than 7 parts of proteids in 100 parts, these proteids 
belonging to the familiar, coagulable groups of the globulins 
and albumens. To the majority of Englishmen however all 
articles of diet prepared principally from blood are distasteful ; 
black pudding or '"'' Blutwursf'' is largely eaten in Germany, and 
its main constituent is pigs' blood. 

§ 35. The articles of diet of w^hich we have thus spoken 
briefly, form certainly a heterogeneous group, and we shall see 
later that the value of each member of the group is much 
affected by its preparation for eating. But, assuming for the 



94 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

moment that all receive the same treatment, or that all are 
eaten raw, it is interesting to notice some of the points of 
difference between them, as on the other hand we have noticed 
the presence of proteids— their point of likeness. 

(a) In the first place we notice a very varying admixture 
of the other foodstuffs with proteid matter. We have seen that 
there is now one percentage of water and now another 
(compare above, § 27), and examination shows that the salts 
present vary, but within narrower limits. In butcher's meat, 
in poultry and game, we may fairly say that slightly over 
I per cent, of saline matter is present; taking this as a 
standard, we may add that in tripe and in ?nilk the percentage 
is rather low (although the importance of the lime-salts in 
milk is great), while the percentage is somewhat high in fish 
and in molluscs (oyster). In cheese, saline matter is abundant. 

But the admixture with carbohydrates and fats varies 
still more. It has been estimated that the daily diet of a 
healthy man should contain 100 grms. (3I ozs.) of proteid 
matter ; if we suppose for a moment that we wish to gain this 
quantity of proteid from the one description of food, and 
choose this from the list of foodstuffs named above, this 
variation in admixture shows very clearly. Thus, in eating 
100 grms. proteid from ivhite of egg, we need eat no carbo- 
hydrates and only 2 grms. of fat ; if the source of the proteid 
is yolk of egg, carbohydrates are absent as before, but the 
necessary quantity of egg-yolk contains 200 grms. fats. A 
quantity of lean beef yielding 100 grms. proteids holds no 
carbohydrates, and may hold as little as 7 grms. of fats ; from 
cow's milk, on the other hand, we can only gain 100 grms. 
proteid if we eat 107 grms. fats and 140 grms. carbohydrates 
as well. 

{b) In the second place, there are differences in digesti- 
bility among the animal substances rich in proteid. Sometimes 
differences in texture, or density, make it easy to understand 



CHAP. VII.] TJie Constituents of Food. 95 

that this should be the case : thus the muscular fibres of the 
heart, although they are naked (i.e. without enclosing mem- 
brane), are packed very firmly together, and so are the cells of 
which the kidney is made up. On the other hand, as we have 
said, the muscular fibres of the tongue (which have enclosing 
membranes) cross each other loosely, forming a right-angled 
network, easy of digestion, and the muscle of tripe is unstriped, 
i.e. made up of naked cells, relatively small, and bound up into 
thin sheets. This structure and arrangement seem to be in 
harmony with what we know practically of the ready digesti- 
bility of tripe, and in the case of this tissue it is probable also 
that the cells of the stomach have some digestive action after 
the animal has been slaughtered, but before the ferment they 
contain is killed by cooking. Again, the substance of cheese 
is very dense, and it is easily comprehensible that the digestive 
juices penetrate it with difficulty, and the same may be said of 
the glairy mass which we know as raw white of egg. To make 
cheese more digestible, we " grate " it ; by " frothing " white of 
egg, or beating it well with yolk, the same end is reached. 

When the muscular fibres eaten are large, or buried in 
much tenacious wrapping, their solution may be difficult ; and, 
when fat is closely mixed with proteid matter, two kinds of 
digestive action must be vigorous (i.e. the digestion of proteid 
and the digestion of fat) if the mixed food is to be satisfactorily 
dissolved. Probably for this reason some " rich " fish, such as 
the salmon (12 parts of fat in 100 parts), or the eel (27 parts 
of fat in 100 parts) are less digestible than the whiting or the 
sole. 

There are, however, differences in digestibility which can 
hardly be accounted for by tangible differences in the com- 
position and " build " of the foods concerned. It may be that 
such differences are introduced by what might be called acci- 
dental mixture of " foreign " substances with tissues which are 
eaten, and that mixture of this kind is responsible, at least in 
part, for the indigestion which sometimes follows the eating of 



g6 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

crab and lobster. But, in other cases, the causes of difference 
are more subtle still : it is found that the rates of digestion of 
raw beef and raw mutton are practically the same ; but medical 
experience has pronounced mutton more digestible than beef. 

{c) Lastly, we must remember that individual differences 
abound in the eaters^ and that idiosyncrasy defies explanation. 
Experiments have shown (as we saw in § 32) that, when lean 
beef is eaten by a healthy human being, only 2 J parts in 100 of 
proteids are rejected from the bowel unabsorbed, and we may 
add that about 3 parts per cent, are thus lost from the proteids 
of egg, and 8 parts per cent, from the proteids of milk. But 
there can be little doubt that these figures would vary much, 
were the human beings examined to be increased in number. 
The healthy persons who cannot, when adult, take milk or eggs 
form an important group, and cases have been known in which 
there was (in health) inability to digest the flesh of poultry— a 
food which is so commonly regarded as suitable for the feeble 
digestion of the convalescent. 



B. Proteids in vegetable substances. 

§ 36. It is a popular belief that proteids belong character- 
istically to animal substances, and carbohydrates to plants and 
their products. And the composition of muscle on the one 
hand, and, on the other, the poverty of animal tissues in 
carbohydrates do give some foundation to the belief. Never- 
theless it is a belief partly founded on misapprehension. From 
plants alone, any animal may obtain and many animals do 
obtain proteids and all the other foodstuffs necessary for 
healthy life. 

Let us consider for a moment, setting aside the habits and 
nutrition of parasites, the scheme of plant life. We recognize 
in the familiar green plant such parts as are commonly her- 



CHAP, vil] The Constituents of Food. 97 

haceous', leaves, young shoots, and (in a somewhat modified 
sense) flowers. These are regions where the chemical changes 
which belong to life are especially active, but they are regions 
which for their well-being are closely dependent upon 
daily food — upon supplies of oxygen and carbonic acid from 
the air, upon water, and saline matters drawn from the soil. 
Cut off from such supplies, they wither and, speedily, they die. 
But there are other parts of plants in which there is storing up 
of what are known as reserve materials; these are substances 
which are food or can be turned into food independently of 
daily supplies from the external world, and they serve to 
support young plants or young shoots when daily food is 
scanty or lacking. This storage may take place in many 
different organs of the plant, such organs being usually modified 
in connection with it ; thus the potato of commerce is an 
altered stem, rich in foodstuffs ; in the onion., food is stored in 
the closely-wrapped leaves of the bulb ; while in the pars?iip., the 
carrot., and the beet we deal with roots. But the plant-organ 
par excellence into which foodstuffs are stored is the seed, 
and this, with certain wrappings or coats of very various 
structure, forms the frnit. The grains of wheat, of barley 
and maize, the almond, the nutmeg, the cardamom, the date- 
stone — these are all seeds, seeds which have within them such 
concentrated materials that the young plant may draw upon 
them for food in the early stages of its growth ; they play a 
part much like that played by the foodstuffs in milk and animal 
eggs. 

Now when we look at plants, not as members of a great 
group of living beings, but as the food of man, we realise (and 
it is a truth often forgotten) that every living vegetable cell that 
is eaten must contain some amount of proteid ; for nothing can 
be living which does not hold some protoplasmic constituent 
however slight, and proteids, as we know, form the basis of 
protoplasm. In lettuce, in the fruit of the grape or the 
tomato, in the leaf-stalk of rhubarb, there is a proteid element, 

B. 1 . 7 



98 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

and, when these succulent parts of plants are eaten raw, it is 
probable that the proteid matter they contain is especially 
soluble, although it is shielded by indigestible cellulose cell 
walls. The amount present is very small, greater in young 
green things than in older tissues in which the quantity of 
water has increased : thus, asparagus, which is the young shoot 
and tightly packed buds of the plant, holds 3 parts of nitro- 
genous matter in 100 parts; while rhubarb, which is an adult 
stem, has hardly i part in 100. And it must not be thought 
that on such fresh, green substances alojie, a man could live 
healthily. The " grass-eating " animals form a large group, but 
their teeth, stomach and intestines have special characters and 
arrangement, fitted for dealing with this food. Man has neither 
these special characters, nor those which belong to the " eaters 
of flesh" (e.g. the cat, the lion) ; he has much more in common 
with the apes and monkeys who are fruit-eaters by nature. It 
is the storage organs of plants that must be eaten if nourish- 
ment from vegetables is to be sufficient for man ; and it is in 
them that, as reserve materials, the proteid substances of plants 
are chiefly found. 

Even among these organs great differences of composition 
exist : the turnip, the carrot, the beet, and the onion are all 
poor in proteids, and contain much water — the turnip 92 parts, 
the onion 91 parts, the carrot 89 parts, the beet 82 parts, all in 
100 parts of substance — even the potato, although more sub- 
stantial than they, has 75 parts of water in 100 parts. The 
grains which are sometimes grouped together and spoken of as 
" cereals " (the seeds of the Gramineae) show a very different 
proportion, but yet cannot be counted actually rich in proteids ; 
thus 800 grms. of wheat, or 1000 grms. of maize or 1200 grms. 
of rice must be taken in order that, in each case, 100 grms. of 
proteids may be obtained. It is in the seeds of plants which 
belong to the natural order Leguminosae and are sometimes 
collectively named " pulse " that proteids are most abundant, 
and, holding but little water, these seeds are, as we shall see^ 



CHAP. VII.] The Constituents of Food. 99 

rich in other foodstuffs also. In the ripe pea, 22 parts by 
weight p.c. are proteids, and the bean and the lentil have 
respectively 23 parts and 25 parts p.c. And while we must 
consume 3000 grms. (five pints) of cow's milk or 5000 grms. 
(eleven pounds) of potatoes to obtain 100 grms. of proteids, 
the same quantity of proteid is yielded by 430 grms. of peas — 
fifteen ounces only\ 

§ 37. Thus we see that from all herbaceous vegetable 
tissue which we eat, we obtain a small but an exceedingly 
small amount of proteid, that from certain organs of plants 
which are reserves of plant food, but yet watery, we may 
obtain more, and that, among vegetable foods, edible seeds 
are the richest in proteids. This is true of the seeds which we 
know as cereals (in which the percentage of proteids is roughly 
10), or the seeds of peas, beans and their allies (in which the 
percentage of proteids is roughly 25). 

We may now ask, can any general statements be made 
concerning these vegetable proteids? 

{a) Globulins are by far the most abundant of the plant 
proteids. Albumins are found but in small quantities and 
rarely, especially in the plants most used as food. Albumoses, 
which it will be remembered are very soluble, occur in the 
milky juice or " latex " of certain foreign plants, and they are 
described in some flowers. Their presence here probably 
means that the proteids, which were stored in the seed in 
some form less easy to dissolve, are beginning to undergo 
change under the action of some ferment, and to be prepared 
for the use of the young plant. 

{b) The plant proteids as they occur in nature are, on 
the whole, more mixed with other foodstuffs than are the 
proteids which are found in animal foods, and this is true 

1 Various fungi and algae have a considerable amount of proteid in their 
composition, but they do not usually iovaxpieces de resistance in diet. 

L. ofC. 7—2 



lOO Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

especially of admixture with the carbohydrates or fats. We 
have seen that loo grms. of proteids may be eaten from 
white of egg, with admixture of no carbohydrates and only 
2 grms. of fats ; and further that the same weight of proteid 
may be taken from lean beef, with 7 grms. of fats and no 
carbohydrates. But if we consider peas — and they are a 
vegetable food rich in proteids — we find that to eat 100 grms. 
q{ proteids from them demands that 7 grms. oi fats and 230 
grms. of carbohydrates shall be eaten too, while in the case of 
corn 14 grms. oifats and 580 grms. of carbohydrates accompany 
100 grms. of proteids. 

ic) As among the food proteids of animals, so among 
those which are obtained from plants, there are differences in 
digestibility. But, taken as a whole, the vegetable proteids 
are less completely absorbed when eaten by man. We find that 
of peas, shelled and well boiled, from 17 — 27 parts per cent, 
by weight of the proteids present are passed from the bowel 
unabsorbed ; the corresponding loss in the case of white bread 
is 20 — 25 parts per cent, by weight of proteids; and as much 
as 40 per cent, of the proteids of lentils may be thus rejected. 
It must be remembered that all these proteids fie in cells 
which have walls of indigestible cellulose, and it is probable 
that the action of the digestive juices may be hindered by 
penetration of this substance — which they leave undissolved. 
It has been found that a flour made from pulse and cereals has 
unabsorbed remains of about 9 parts per cent, of proteids; 
here it may be that grinding up the cells with their contents 
necessarily breaks the walls, and so makes it easier to dissolve 
what lies within. 



CHAP. VII.] The Constituents of Food. loi 

Carbohydrates. 

A. Carbohydrates in animal substances. 

§ 38. It is, probably, the distribution of carbohydrates 
in foods which has led to the belief that proteids belong 
characteristically to animal substances, and carbohydrates to 
plants and their products. The belief is, as we have said, 
partly founded on misapprehension, for all plants when living 
have a proteid constituent, while the proteid content of some 
edible fungi is large ; but the carbohydrates are, certainly, very 
unequally distributed. We may say that, with the great 
exception of milk, there is no animal food in which 
they abound. They do play a most important part in 
animal life, and the starch-like body glycogen is plentiful 
in the liver sometimes, and, in very early stages of life, it 
occurs in the muscles and in other tissues. Yet liver and 
muscular tissue, as used in the kitchen, have no carbohydrate 
constituent sufficiently important to be taken into account. 
Glycogen only accumulates after abundant nourishment of 
a particular kind has been taken, and animals are not usually 
slaughtered in full digestion ; thus glycogen is absent, nor can 
we expect to find sugar, which springs from' glycogen in 
animals by post mortem change. Milk, as we have said, has 
much carbohydrate material; in 100 parts' of cow's milk 87 
are water, but of the remaining 13 parts, 5 are milk sugar, or 
lactose. Indeed we may say that the only animal carbohydrate 
of importance from a dietetic point of view is the soluble 
carbohydrate, sugar of milk; and the fact that it is soluble 
(and therefore at the disposal of the absorbing cells of the 

^ Throughout this section the term "parts," when used of the quanti- 
tative composition of foods, expresses parts by weight. 



102 Do7nestic Economy. [pt. I. 

intestine without much preparation), is in harmony with the 
fact that milk is the natural food of all young sucking animals. 
When very young, these animals have either scanty saliva, 
or saliva with weak digestive action. 



B. Carbohydrates in vegetable substances. 

§ 39. Green plants are the great builders-up of carbo- 
hydrate substances. Formed chiefly in the leaves, these sub- 
stances are used for the nutrition both of the plant which 
forms them and of the young plant which shall succeed it. 
For the latter purpose they are stored, generally in some 
insoluble form, as in the date-seed, which contains much 
cellulose, or in the potato, which has almost 20 parts per cent, 
of starch. But the more soluble bodies, dextrin and sugar, do 
occur, — for example in the chestnut, in the flesh of the date, 
and in the grape. 

It is, then, the storage organs of pla?its which we must 
examine if we wish to examine vegetable foods which afford 
carbohydrate food-stuffs. We will consider certain of these 
organs which may be looked on as types, noting those points 
about their structure and constituents which are important in 
the shaping of a diet. 

A grain of wheat is a familiar storehouse of vegetable 
carbohydrates, and there are three points about it which 
concern us here. First, it is a mass of small, closely-fitting 
compartments or cells, the protoplasmic substance of each 
cell being bounded by walls of cellulose : second, the contents 
of the cells are not of the same nature throughout the grain : 
third, the contents of the cells vary somewhat with the age 
and condition of the grain. 

The first point is of importance because cellulose is practi- 
cally indigestible to man. If a grain of wheat were eaten 



CHAP. VII.] The Co7istittcents of Food. 103 

whole (except for such crushing and breaking as the teeth 
bring about in chewing) the digestive fluids — saHva and 
pancreatic juice — would have to penetrate the indigestible 
walls before reaching the nutritious carbohydrates which lie 
within ; if the grain be very finely ground before eating, the 
mixing of digestive juices is more ready, their action easier 
and more nearly complete. Thus the nutritious matter of 
a very fine flour can be acted upon more thoroughly 
than can that which is made up of coarser particles \ 

In the second place, the contents of the cells of the 
wheat grain are not alike throughout the grain. The contents 
of the cells may be generally described as starch grains and 
stored proteid, with a small amount of protoplasmic (i.e. living 
proteid) substance ; in the cells towards the centre of the 
grain the starch is most abundant ; towards the exterior there 
is a relative increase of proteids. Further, the walls are 
unlike in composition ; delicate cellulose walls mark the central 
cells ; towards the outside the walls are thicker, and some of 
them are very dense, so that they form a protective covering. 
Thus flour prepared from the whole grain of wheat may differ 
considerably from preparations which contain only the central 
or the outside (cortical) parts of the grain ; moreover, flours 
made from the central cells alone can never be rich in 
proteids, since the proteid-rich layer is cortical. 

In the third place, the contents of the cells of the wheat- 
grain vary somewhat with the age and condition of the grain, 
and with the degree of ripening. There are variations in the 
amount of proteid matter present, and variations in the cha- 
racter of the carbohydrate. A diastatic ferment is present in 
wheat, and, by its action, some of the stored starch is changed 
to sugar when the grains are of suitable age and placed under 
suitable conditions (as in malting for beer-making). This 
variation is not of great importance in ordinary diet, but some 
fancy flours owe certain of their peculiarities to the state 

^ See above, § 37. 



104 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

of the grain from which they are made. For the most part 
we may say that the carbohydrate of wheat is starch, with 
dextrin and sugar. About 70 parts by weight in 100 of 
English wheat are made up of starch ; about 2 parts are 
cellulose ; about 11 or 12 parts are proteid and other nitro- 
genous matter; and mineral matters or salts make up i to 2 
per cent., and are, roughly, equal to the amount of fats present. 
The salient points about the carbohydrate food-stuifs in 
wheat then, are the following : 

{a) The main carbohydrate starch (of which there are 
about 70 parts per cent.) is indigestible in the raw state : 
cooked, it needs change to bodies which can be absorbed, — 
a change which is readily brought about by the ferments of 
saliva and of pancreatic juice. 

ib) The starch is mixed with food-stuffs of the other 
classes; thus when we eat 100 grammes of starch from wheat, 
we eat with it 17 grammes of proteids and 2^ grammes of 
fats. In this respect the wheat contrasts with lean beef (which 
we took as an example of animal, proteid, food) ; there is in the 
beef greater preponderance of its main constituent^ proteid. 

(c) Salts are present; rather more than \\ parts in 100. 

The whole groups of "cereals," as they are popularly 
termed, show a strong likeness to wheat in these salient points. 
The cereals are the familiar edible fruits of the Gramineae, 
and although there are variations in their constitution — excess 
of starch and especial deficiency of fat in rice ; relatively large 
admixture of fat in oats — yet they all hold starch as the 
predominant food-stuff; in all, the starch is enclosed by cel- 
lulose walls; in all, nitrogenous matters (§37), water, and 
salts are present too. 

In 100 parts of rice there are about 76 parts of starch, and there are 63 
parts in oat?neal, 66 parts in maize, 63 parts in buckwheat (all in 100 



CHAP. VII.] The Constituents of Food. 105 

parts of the grain). Fat is almost absent from rice : in oats it may amount 
to 8 or 10 parts in jog. 

In the chestnut we have a seed which, though different 
from a cereal grain in the eye of a botanist, is almost as rich 
in carbohydrates. When the nut is ground into flour, the 
cells holding these carbohydrates are broken down, at least in 
part, and the carbohydrates are set free ; they form, with the 
remnants of cell-walls, a flour — chestnut flour. Analysis 
of this flour shows that the digestible carbohydrates present 
are mixed : there are sugar and dextrin as well as starch. 

The digestible carbohydrates amount to : — starch about 30 parts, 
dextrin about 23 parts, sugar about 17 parts, all in 100 parts of chestnut 
flour. 

We may contrast with these storage organs the seed of 
such a legume as the pea. This seed is like the wheat "grain in 
that carbohydrates abound, and in that the important carbo- 
hydrate is starch. But less starch is found than in wheat or 
in the other cereals and, as we know, more proteid matter 
occurs (§ 36). Cellulose walls enclose the stored up foodstuffs, 
and salts are relatively abundant, that is, they generally 
amount to more than 2 parts in 100. The same characters 
that mark the pea are distinctive also of beans, leiitils, and 
the other seeds which are popularly known as " pulse." 

The actual percentage of starch in " pulse " is between 50 and 60. 
The amount of fat in haricot-beans, peas, and lentils is small (about a parts 
per cent.) but in the less familiar "pulses," pea-imts and soy beans, 
there is much more ; 50 parts and about 18 parts per cent, respectively. 

A further contrast to the wheat grain, and indeed to all 
the seeds we have yet considered, we find in the sugary 
fruits, of which the grape may be taken as a type. Here 
the little hard pip or seed corresponds to the cleaned grain 
of wheat, and we eat the soft, ripe, fruit-wall, which encloses 
the seeds. This is cellular, but the cells are for the most 



io6 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

part large and very thin-walled ; their contents are watery, and 
we find pectic bodies^ and gum, substances which there is 
reason to regard as produced from carbohydrates by some 
chemical change. The water in a grape makes up 80 parts in 
100; about 13 parts are sugar, and 3 parts are the pectic 
bodies. With the grape we may group most of the familiar 
"berries" (including the orange and lemon), "stone fruit," such 
as the chei-ry, t\\Q peach, \\\& plum ; and apples, and pears. The 
relative amounts of sugar and of the pectic bodies vary, and 
different organic acids are found in different fruits (malic acid 
in apples and pears ; citric acid in gooseberries, lemons, and 
oranges ; tartaric acid in grapes) ; still, there is strong likeness. 
In all, we find the large thin-walled cells, with their watery, 
sugary, contents^; in all, some bodies which if not carbohydrates 
are closely allied to them. The banana differs, in that it is 
especially rich in sugar and the pectic bodies, and lacks 
organic acid ; and in the pod of the carob- or locust-bean (used 
as food by some Europeans, though not by Englishmen), we 
find nearly 70 parts in every 100 made up of sugar, pectine, 
and gum. The flesh of the date is also rich in soluble carbo- 
hydrates and their allies (sugar, pectine, gum), and the same 
is true of dried figs ; but it must be remembered that the date, 
the carob-pods and the fig have lost water since they were 
fresh and ripe. Tojuatoes, melons, marrows and cucutnbers — all 
of them fruits which may be considered in this group, can 
hardly be looked upon as containing stores of carbohydrates ; 
for even the tomato has only 6 parts per cent, of sugar, and 
the others, poorer still in this, their only digestible carbo- 
hydrate, are not eaten for their nutritive value. 

^ In § 28 brief mention has been made of the characters of pectine. It 
is probable that this name has been used to denote a group of substances 
rather than one chemical substance, and to indicate this the term pectic 
bodies has been used in this paragraph. 

2 Certain of the cells, e.g. in the pear, are quite different and practically 
indigestible : they are the " scleroblasts " of botanists and have gi-eatly 
thickened, woody cell-walls. 



CHAP. VII.] The Constitimtts of Food. 107 

It may be of interest to arrange the chief members of the group of 
fruits here described (and the group is of course purely artificial and formed 
for present needs) in series, indicating their richness in carbohydrates and 
their richness in water. The order is, naturally, nearly inverse. 







Carbohydrate 


Water 


Fruit. 




in 100 parts. 


in TOO parts. 


Dried figs 




60 


17 


Dates (dried) 




55 


21 


Carob pods (dried) 




51 


15 


Bananas 




19 


74 


Grapes 




13 


80 


Oranges 




8 


86 


Pears 




7 


84 


Apples 




7 


83 


Tomatoes 




6 


^0 


Peaches, cucumbers. 


and 1 


2 


94 


Vegetable marrows ) 





These percentages are approximate, and bodies of the pectic group are 
not here included in the carbohydrates. 

§ 40. It is not only in seeds and fruits that we find abundant 
vegetable carbohydrates : there are storage places for them, as 
we have said, in other organs of the plant; in stems, leaves, 
roots. These organs are often changed or modified, so that 
the leaves are not like typical green foliage leaves, and the stems 
not like the familiar upright, green, plant-stems. The potato 
may be taken as a well-known example. It is a stem, changed 
and swollen, a mass of cells whose cellulose walls with their 
thin lining of protoplasm enclose watery contents (75 parts 
in 100 parts are water), and contain abundant starch (about 
18 parts per cent.) with a small amount of other carbohydrates 
and of pectic bodies. That is to say, the potato is watery, 
but yields a starchy food. And, resembling it in general 
plan, although differing from it in some details, we have almost 
all those vegetables that are popularly known as "root vege- 
tables " : these may be true roots, as the carrot, the beet ; 
stems, as thQ Jerusalem artichoke; inconspicuous stems bearing 



io8 



Domestic Economy. 



[PT. I. 



prominent leaves, as the onion, and the true artichoke. For 
the most part their stored carbohydrate is a sugar, — this is 
so in the beet, the parsnip, the carrot, and the onion : in the 
parsnip and the sweet potato^ starch is present too. The 
pectic group of bodies is always found ; indeed in the turnip 
they seem to replace stored carbohydrate ; for pectine and its 
allies form 3 parts in 100, while starch, dextrin, and sugar are 
absent. 

All the organs which we have just considered have more than 75 parts 
per cent, of water, and in onions and turnips the percentage of water is 
over 90. Their carbohydrate content is, approximately, as follows : 





Starch 




Sugar 


Pectic bodies 




in 100 parts 


;. in 


100 parts. 


in 100 parts. 


Potatoes 


18 




— 


2 (with some dextrin) 


Sweet potato 


15 




l\ 


3 (with some dextrin) 


Parsnip 


3'5 




5 


nearly 4 (with some dextrin) 


Beetroot 


— 




10 


2^ 


Carrot 


— 




4i 


2h 




Turnip 
Onion 





about 


5 


3 

about 5 



From the list just given it will be realized, that the carrot, 
the turnip, and the onion have no claim to be regarded as 
foods rich in carbohydrates ; and the same is true of the 
various salad plants {lettuce, tvatercress, mustai'd, endive^ and 
of the many leaves and herbaceous stems that are used as 
"vegetables" or "fruits." Celery contains a little sugar (2 parts 
per cent.) ; watercress, between 3 and 4 parts per cent, of 
starch and its "gum" derivatives; rhubarb a little sugar with 
" gum " ; but the value of these and other green foods depends 
on other characteristics (see below, § 46). 



^ This is Convolvulus Batatas^ and not related to the true potato, So- 
lanum tuberosinn. 



CHAP. VII.] TJu Constittiejtts of Food. 1 09 



Carbohydrate food-stuffs in plants. 
Summary. 

§ 41. From the facts given in the foregoing paragraphs we 
gather one or two general statements easier to remember, 
perhaps, than actual statistical details. 

A. Starch is the carbohydrate most generally found 
and most abundantly found in plants. Dextrin and sugar 
occur sometimes, but in much smaller quantities : in certain 
parts of certain plants the imperfectly understood pectic 
bodies are found, and they are probably to be looked upon as 
derivatives of carbohydrates. The carbohydrate (starch) 
in which plants are the richest, is one which must be 
changed before it can be absorbed by the digestive 
cells of animals. 

B. The Cereals, as they are popularly termed, hold the 
richest stores of starchy food ; they include most of the grains 
which are commonly ground to form meal or flour, and which 
are the main sources of bread and cakes. 

C. Pulse is the name given to a group of seeds not 
quite so rich in starch as are the cereals, but more widely 
nutritious, since they (for the most part) contain larger stores 
of proteid. These seeds may be ground to meal (pea-meal, 
bean-meal, lentil flour), but are not adapted for bread making. 

D. A group of sugary fruits may be next distinguished, 
they all contain much more water than do the cereals or 
the "pulses," and sugar takes the place of starch: in most 
cases the pectic bodies appear too. The fruits which may 
be placed in this group are varied in character ; dried figs 
have abundant sugar; dates and bananas a considerable 
amount ; while the peach can hardly be looked on as a store- 
house of any carbohydrate. 



I lo Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

E. Another rather heterogeneous group is formed by 
stems, roots, or leaves, in which the function of storing up 
reserves is added to, or replaces their usual function. In 
these there is sometimes a considerable amount of starch 
(as in the potato) ; sometimes only sugar, and that in small 
amount (the carrot) ; sometimes mainly the pectic bodies (the 
turnip). 

F. The edible green leaves (cabbage), stems (asparagus), 
or whole plants (cress seedlings), which have great dietary 
value in some ways, are unimportant as sources of carbo- 
hydrate food-stuffs. 

G. There are certain seeds, fruits, or other parts of plants 
which have marked characters, but are not easily included 
in the foregoing groups. Thus the chestnut is rich in 
starch, sugar, and dextrin ; the filbert has a fair amount 
of carbohydrates; and Iceland moss is very rich if not in 
starch, in a body which resembles it closely. 



CHAP. VII.] The Constituents of Food. ill 

Fats. 
A. Fats in animal substances.. 

§ 42. When fat is formed in the animal body it is formed 
as the work of living cells. These cells, fed by the lymph 
and blood, — which carry nourishment throughout the animal, — 
deposit in their substance minute oil-drops. And when this 
particular activity is carried very far, the oil-drops run together, 
growing at the expense of the substance of the cell, so that 
this substance remains as a very delicate case for the fat which 
it holds. 

Suet is a mass of fat formed in this way by the joint 
action of thousands of cells ; so too is the fat of beef mutton^ 
pork^ goose, salmo?i^ the eel and of 2i\\ fatty fishes and 7neats. 

And marrow (that is to ssij yeilozv niarrow) is nearly pure 
fatty tissue. 

In the nen'es and in brain we find fatty substance of a 
special kind — the medulla or myelin sheath of the nerves. 
The nerves in general do not form a food by themselves, for, 
as we know, they are scattered through the tissues of the body. 
But brains are eaten, though they are a delicacy or adjunct to 
food rather than a staple food : they are nutritious and digest- 
ible, and fat is one of the food-stuffs they yield. 

Liver we have placed among the proteid-holding foods, 
and its main value is as a source of proteid. But a little fat is 
almost always found in liver and sometimes, as in certain fish 
and in the diseased geese which furnish pate de foie gras, the 
amount is considerable. 

Thus we see that the fat-laden tissues of ani- 
mals form one great source of fatty food— fat meat, 
fat fish, marrow, brain, liver. In fat meat and fish 
and in marrow the fat drops are formed within con- 
nective-tissue cells; in the brain it is the nerve fibres 



112 Domestic Economy, [PT. I. 

which have a fatty constituent; in the liver the liver 
cells are changed and come to contain fat, and in 
many cases the connective tissue of the liver is 
loaded too. 

But the activity of the cells which form fat does not always 
end in the production of such a mass of fat-cells as we find in 
suet. Let us consider, for a moment, the yolk of an ^%^ ; 
chemically it holds about 30 parts per cent, of fats and 15 parts 
per cent, of proteids ; histologically it is a gigantic cell, with 
very, very little protoplasm, and a large quantity of reserve- 
material destined to nourish the growing bird. The fat of the 
reserve-material is for the most part in tiny drops which do not 
run together : yolk of egg is in fact an emulsion^ though not 
quite a typical emulsion. 

Now let us turn to consider milk. The cells of the 
mammary gland form fat-drops within themselves, but do not 
end by becoming mere fat-cells. They cast off the small drop- 
lets of fat which they have formed, into the duct or gland- 
passage which leads to the exterior, and here the fat-drops 
remain separate from each other, by reason of the other 
constituents of milk which are also formed and turned out by 
the gland-cells. The fat of milk is very finely divided; it forois 
a true emulsion. 

Thus we see that fat formed by living cells, but 
set free from those cells (milk), or loosely held in 
the substance of a vastly extended cell (yolk), and 
remaining in a state of fine division, is important as 
fatty food. 

Lastly, we may have foods containing a very high per- 
centage of fat prepared from the various fatty tissues 
or from milk. Familiar examples are butter, dripping, lard, 
together with the different imitations of butter. Here the fat 
is not within cells and not emulsified : in lard and dripping it is 



CHAP, vil] The Constituents of Food. 113 

pressed or drawn out of the cells which formed it ; in butter, 
the shaking and stirring of the churn have destroyed the emul- 
sion of milk. Cheese may claim to be a fatty food, but has an 
equal quantity of proteid — about 30 parts per cent. In cheese- 
making, the proteid is precipitated and the milk fat clings to 
it ; then, by pressure, a very dense food is formed. 

We may arrange examples of the groups of foods just mentioned, in a 
descending series, beginning with those in which the percentage of fat is 
the highest, and giving approximately the percentage composition in fat. 



Article of food 




Fat in 


100 parts 






by weight 


Marrow of bones 


about 


95 


parts 


Butter 




87 




Bacon 




65 




Fat mutton 




35 




Cheese 




30 




Yolk of egg 




30 




Salmon 




12 




Brain 




8 




Milk 




4 





It is interesting to note that milk — the food which is in itself a complete 
and satisfactory food for the early months of human life — comes low in the 
list. Indeed the foods which have a very high percentage of fat are not 
suitable for digestion alone, at least in temperate climates: we eat bread 
with butter or dripping, and beans with fat bacon. 

§ 43. Looking at animal fats as forming a group, can we 
make any statement about them which is important from a 
dietetic point of view ? We can do little more than recall the 
statements made in § 23. 

A. They are as a rule mixtures of fats. And this fact 
is of importance ; for different fats have different melting points, 
and thus, mixtures which contain the fats in varying propor- 
tion will also vary in melting points. Speaking of animal fats 
generally, we may say their melti?ig points are high ; they are 
not liquid at the ordinary temperature of the air in England, 

B. 8 



114 Domestic Ecojiomy. [PT. I. 

but there are distinct differences among them, so that we come 
to have what are called hard fats and soft fats. Thus mutton 
fat is particularly hard (melting point high) ; pork fat, and 
goose grease are especially soft (melting point low). 

B. But, further, the animal fats, as eaten in England at 
least, are neutral fats. A very small amount of fatty acid 
may be present ; when its amount increases we say the fat is 
ra?icid, and rancid fats are usually rejected as food. 

C. And lastly, with the exception of the fats in milk and 
in yolk of egg, the animal fats of food are not emulsified. 
Freed from the tissue cells in which they lie, by digestion, or 
by previous treatment, the fat-drops run together into larger 
drops and irregular masses. 

Thus a good deal of physical change and chemi- 
cal change is called for by the fats of food before 
they can be absorbed by the cells of the intestinal 
wall. They must, as a rule, be melted; they must be 
emulsified; and, in part at least, they must be split up 
into fatty acids and glycerine. 

As we have said, milk offers fat which is already 
emulsified : we have seen, earlier, that its proteid is a 
soluble proteid and that its carbohydrate is sugar of milk ; the 
constitution of milk is admirably adapted for the nourishment 
of the young animal. 



B. Fats in vegetable substances. 

§ 44. Changing only a few words here and there, much 
that has been said above in § 39 about the occurrence of 
carbohydrates in plants might here be said touching the 
occurrence of fats. Like carbohydrates, the fats are mainly 
stored in seeds and fruits, like carbohydrates they are found, 



CHAP. VII.] The Constituents of Food. 115 

but less abundantly, in stems and leaves. A fatty seed is a 
closely grouped mass of little cells, as is a starchy seed ; the 
cell-walls are of indigestible cellulose, some delicate sheet of 
living substance lines them, a mineral residue (i.e. some form 
of " salt ") is always present. 

But, changing the point of view a little, we might with 
equal justice draw a parallel between the occurrence of fats in 
plants and their occurrence in the tissues of animals. We do 
not, indeed, use commonly any fatty vegetable secretion which 
is comparable with milk (although the " milk " of the cocoanut 
has resemblances in more than name), but we must distinguish 
vegetable fats as {a) Fats laid down in the tissues and eaten 
with them, or {b) Fats expressed or prepared frofn these tissues. 

{a) The fats laid down in tissues are comparable with 
those eaten in fatty meat (adipose tissue), but, whereas the 
residue of cell-substance which encloses fat in animal tissues is 
digestible, there is m plant-cells an additional, indigestible cell- 
wall. A seed such as the almond holds more than 50 parts 
per cent, of fats, and the cocoanut, the brazil nut, the walnut, 
varying somewhat in percentage composition, are all richly 
fatty. In the olive, it is not only the seed (kernel) but also 
the fleshy fruit wall that is laden with fat (much as the date- 
flesh is laden with sugar), and as an example of fat in plant 
stems we may take the whole natural order to which belong 
Angelica^ Chervil, and Fe?wel (the Umbelliferae). Here we 
cannot perhaps speak of concentrated stores, but in both stems 
and leaves there is a volatile oil which, at least in the fennel, is 
sometimes combined with bread to make a palatable and 
nutritious food. 

{b) Fats prepared by chemical or mechanical 
means from the plant substance which formed them are 
among the most familiar in domestic and commercial life. 
Olive oil alone must rank very high in popularity as a food- 
stuff, especially in southern Europe, and the oils prepared 

8—2 



ii6 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

respectively from walnuts and almonds and from linseed are 
eaten, though less generally, and less abundantly. 

A list of typical fat-yielding vegetable foods, arranged according to the 
percentage of fat they contain, forms an interesting pendant to the list of 
fatty animal foods given in § 42. 



Article of food 




Amount of fat in 100 






parts 


by weight 


Brazil nut 


about 


65 


parts 


Almond 




55 




Olive 




40 




Linseed 




38 




Cocoanut 




35 




Walnut 




30 




Oatmeal 




10 





We meet with the grains of oats once more in this place; in earlier 
paragraphs we recognized them as valuable for their starch (63 p.c.) and 
their proteids (16 p.c). 

Can we group together these vegetable fats and make any 
general statements about them ? 

§ 45. (A) They are in the main neutral fats. De- 
composition into fatty acids and glycerine is easily brought 
about, especially in the case of non-purified fats ; when this 
decomposition is vigorous we have (v. siipra^ § 43) the con- 
dition of rancidity. 

(B) In the cells of fruits and (especially) of seeds, fats 
are often associated with nitrogenous food-stuffs. It 
is rare to find starch and fat in the same seed at the same 
time (both are present, however, in the filbert kernel) : but the 
almond, the pistachio nut, the pea-nut, have all more than 20 
parts per cent, of proteids and related bodies. Thus many of 
these seeds are highly nutritious ; but on the other hand they 
are difficult of digestion, for both proteids and fats are 
shielded by the indigestible cellulose walls within which they 
lie. Indeed the digestive organs of civilized man — so often 



CHAP. VII.] The Constituents of Food. 117 

weakened by hereditary and present habits — make no great 
use of highly fatty seeds. 

The case is different with the pressed out or prepared oils ; 
here nothing stands between the fatty food-stuff and the diges- 
tive organs, but the oils are }iot 7iative emulsio?is^ but are 
massive, and therefore a first action in digestion is their emul- 
sification. 

(C) The vegetable fats have as a rule low melting 
points. It is perhaps because we are accustomed to see 
them in the liquid (or melted) state that we instinctively speak 
of them as oils. Oils are fats ; and the fats characteristic of 
the olive, the almond, the rapeseed, the linseed, the walnut, 
and other seeds and fruits are liquid at ordinary temperatures. 
But the fats of the palm and the cocoanut are solid at these 
temperatures, and in this property they recall the groups of the 
animal fats. 



1 1 8 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 



Salts and Water. 

In discussing the nature of food-stuffs in Chapter VL we 
pointed out that in one sense proteids, fats, and carbohydrates, 
by complex chemical change, upheld and formed anew the 
living substance of the animal body. But in a wider sense 
inorganic and organic salts and water share in the labour; 
without them an animal would die. We will dwell briefly on 
the distribution of (i) salts, (2) water, in animal and vegetable 
foods considered together. 



I. Salts in animal and vegetable substances. 

§ 46. It is open to us to eat various salts, inorganic and 
organic, either in a pure state or mixed with food, and one in- 
organic salt — chloride of sodium — is largely eaten in the latter 
fashion. But though the behaviour of salts within the body, 
i.e. the part they play in physiology, is obscure, one thing we 
can say — that that part is better played when they are eaten 
as constituents of food than when they are eaten alone, or as 
adjuncts to food, or drunk in solution. In the latter case, 
indeed, they seem to have the character of drugs — their use 
belongs rather to disordered conditions than to healthy life. 
But a discussion of the mode of action of saline matters is 
beside the point here ; accepting the facts that they are im- 
portant qualitatively in food, although the amount present is 
always small compared with the total amount of food, we have 
to consider briefly what is their distribution among foods. 

We will take first a group of animal foods, including in it 
all organs of animals which are commonly eaten. 

In butcher's meat we find rather more than i part of 



CHAP. VII.] The Constituents of Food. 119 

mineral matter in 100, but in fat meat (unsalted) there is 
sometimes only \ part p.c. 

Poultry and game have also from i to i^ parts p.c. 

Fish for the most part contain more, varying from i part 
in the eel, to 3 parts in the flounder. 

Eggs have about i'3 parts p.c, and the yolk is slightly 
richer in salts than the white. 

Milk and cream have less than i part p.c. ; there are ^ in 
cow's milk, \ in human milk, and nearly \ p.c. in a fairly 
typical cream. 

The cereals generally hold more mineral matter than the 
meats when the whole grain is examined. {Oats 2 parts, 
maize 2 parts, rye \\ parts p.c.) Removal of the outside 
layers of the grains lessens the content in saline matters ; rice 
has only \ part p.c, a fine ivhite flour hardly more than \ p.c, 
while a fairly coarse bra7i (bran representing the part of wheat 
rejected in making white flour) has 6 parts p.c 

The seeds known as pulse have still more mineral matter ; 
in peas there are 3 parts, in lentils 2\ parts, in haricot beans 
nearly 3 parts p.c. ; and the oily seeds which are commonly 
called nuts are in many cases as rich (almonds contain more 
than 3 parts p.c). The storage organs which are popularly 
known as root vegetables may rank nearly on a level with 
butcher's meat in regard to saline matters, but they are slightly 
poorer {potatoes i part, carrots i part, tnrnips less than 
I part p.c). 

Among green vegetables we find that sea-kale and 
celery have less than i part p.c. of salts ; cabbage., lettuce., 
ivatercress have i part p.c. or slightly more, and spinach heads 
the list with 2 parts p.c 

The sugary fruits are poor in inorganic salts ; apples, 
pears, grapes, peaches, oranges, have all \ p.c. or less ; but in 
these fruits importa7it organic salts occur — the salts of malic 
acid, of tartaric acid, of citric acid, or the acids 
themselves. The lemon stands out conspicuously 



120 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

among these fruits: it holds about \\ parts p. c. of 
mineral matter, and 5 parts p.c. of citric acid. 

Briefly, we may say that to have 2 to 3 parts of 
saline matter in 100 parts of a natural food is to be 
rich in saline matter, and that the pulses and some 
of the nuts answer to this definition. Cereals must 
be placed next, to be followed in order by fish, eggs, 
game and poultry, butcher's meat. About on a level 
with butcher's meat we place green vegetables; the 
root vegetables come rather lower in the list. We 
place milk next, and last, the groups of sugary fruits 
— which are however rich in organic acids. 

§ 47. We have drawn up this list having regard only to the 
saline constituents of the various foods and looking upon them 
in each case as forming 07ie item. But the saline constituents of 
different foods are not alike. In the most important foods we 
find iron, magnesium, potassium, chlorine, sodium, phosphorus, 
calcium (lime), but these are present in varying proportions. 
Further, what is called the acid radicle may vary ; thus one 
food may hold chiefly chlorides ; another, phosphates ; another, 
silicates. And, lastly, the " mineral " element may exist not as 
a familiar inorganic salt such as sulphate of iron or sulphate of 
lime, but linked to or chemically hidden in some 
complex organic substance probably very important 
in the chemistry of life. 

These facts show that the simple terms salt., saline matters., 
mineral matters., cover wide variety ; we cannot pretend here 
to enter minutely into their meanings even for the chief forms 
of food ; but one or two points are not only especially interest- 
ing, but are charged with significance to anyone who shapes a 
diet. We will consider briefly the presence of calcium, iron 
and phosphorus-holding bodies in the mineral matter of some 
of the more familiar foods. 

But in connection with the consideration, two points must 



CHAP. VII.] The Constituents of Food. 121 

be borne in mind. To examine the mineral constituents of 
complicated foods, the foods are usually dried and burnt. 
Thus all organic matter is broken up and dispersed, as various 
volatile substances, and an ash remains which is the mineral 
residue ; all the metals which were present in the original foods 
are present still, but we may be almost certain that they 
existed originally in different combinations, — com- 
plex combinations which have been split up by the 
necessary process of analysis. 

In the second place, the total amount of mineral matter is 
so small that only very minute fractions of its constituents are 
present in 100 parts of food in the raw state. It is slightly 
easier then to consider 1000 or 10,000 parts of food: we will 
speak of the content of 10,000 parts, but it must not be 
forgotten that this is so, and the figures must not be 
compared with percentages. 

Lime. 



Iron 



(Foods arranged in 


Calcium as oxide in 10,000 


descending series) 


parts raw food 


cow's milk 


20 


yolk of egg 


18 


peas 


12 


wheat 


6 


human milk 


3 


potato 


-4 


white of egg 


2 


beef 


I 


1. 

(Foods arranged in 


Iron as oxide in 10,000 


descending series) 


parts raw food 


yolk of egg 


2 


equal \ peas 


2 


(^ wheat 


2 


ual ^^^^^ 
^ i potato 


I 


I 


white of egg 


\ 


(human milk 


^V 


" (cow's milk 


^ 



122 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 



Phosphorus. 




(Foods arranged in 


Phosphoric acid 


descending series) 


in 10,000 parts 


yolk of egg 


92 


peas 


85 


wheat 


80 


beef 


56 


cow's milk 


24 


potato 


16 


human milk 


5 


white of egg 


3 



We have chosen these mineral constituents because each 
has an importance of its own in the animal body. Phospho- 
rus is an integral part of calcium phosphate, and calcium 
phosphate forms more than 30 parts p.c. of bone. And in all 
nervous tissue (nerve-cells, nerve-fibres) complex phosphorus- 
holding substances are present. The importance of healthy 
bones and healthy brains can hardly be rated too high. 

Calcium shares with phosphorus in the composition of 
bone, and is present not only as the phosphate but as the 
carbonate. 

Iron is always present in the red colouring matter of the 
blood (haemoglobin), and we know that this is the great oxygen- 
carrier of the mammalian body. And the recent work of 
physiologists shows that iron is also hidden away in com- 
bination with the living substance which forms the nuclei of 
cells. 

It is clear however that the importance of these substances 
is not the same at all periods of life ; the building up of healthy 
bones and teeth belongs especially to childhood : it is only 
their maintenance which is important when growth has ceased. 
Thus organic foods rich in lime-compounds are especially 
valuable for the young. In old age their value is less deter- 
minate, for an undue laying down of lime-compounds, as for 
example in cartilage and in the walls of blood-vessels, is one of 
the physiological dangers in age. Phosphates (or some more 



CHAP. VII.] The Constituents of Food. 123 

complex phosphorus-holding bodies) are also doubtless of great 
importance to children ; but if, as seems probable, we must 
associate them with chemical change in all nervous matter, 
then they are of importance in all phases of life. 

The demand for iron also runs through life, but is especially 
urgent in such conditions of poverty of blood as have been 
named anaemic : it is probable that very minute quantities of 
iron satisfy the needs of the body, and probable, too, that the 
smallness of the quantity in milk is bound up with the fact 
that the young animal which is nourished by milk after birth, 
receives iron from its mother before birth. 



2. Water in animal and vegetable substances. 

§ 48. When we remember that about three-fourths of the 
living body are made up of water ; that all the nitrogenous 
waste of the body is discharged in watery solution ; that the 
undigested residues of food are always moist when they are 
ejected ; that every breath expired, is loaded with watery 
vapour, we realize easily that water must be an important 
constituent of diet. In the foregoing paragraphs, we have seen 
incidentally how different an amount of water is contained in 
different raw foods, and what must be said now is hardly more 
than a recapitulation of what has been said, but with a new 
emphasis. 

If we arrange the groups of foods which we have been 
considering, in a descending series, having regard only to the 
amount of water they contain, we must head the list with 
green vegetables, the salad plants, green stems (for example 
rhubarb), and the herbaceous parts of plants generally. The 
percentage of water in this group is over 90 and ofteti over 
95 parts. 

Most edible fungi have 90 parts p.c. ; but the truffle is 



124 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

exceptionally solid, and contains slightly less water than the 
potato. 

The sugary fruits, and "root vegetables" (as they 
are called), have as a rule more than 80 p.c. Milk, game 
and poultry, butcher's meat, eggs, and some fish have 
all as much as or more than 70 parts p.c. 

" Nuts," cream, and cheese have considerably less, 
and may be looked upon as intermediate between the foods 
which we call "watery" (roughly speaking three-fourths water) 
and those in which the water is less than one-fourth of the 
total weight. Such are bacon, the cereals, the pulses, 
butter, and oatmeal. 

In the following series the percentage composition is approximate: 



Food (raw) 


Water in loo parts 


Green vegetables 


95 


Fungi (mushroom) 


90 


Milk 


86 


Sugary fruits 


80 to 85 


" Root" vegetables 


75 to 80 


Game and poultry 


75 


Eggs 


71 


Butcher's meat 


70 


Fish 


60 to 80 


"Nuts" 


40 to 50 


Cheese 


.S4 


Bacon 


22 


Cereals (usually) 


14 


Pulses 


12 to 14 


Butter 


9 to 10 


Oatmeal 


5 



It must be remembered that the amount of water in raw 
foods by no means represents the amount in foods 
as they are eaten. Mutton has more than 12 times as 
much as freshly ground oatmeal, but mutton, when it is 
roasted, loses water in the process, while oatmeal, made into 
porridge, must often be eaten with 10 times its bulk of water. 



CHAP. VII.] The Constituents of Food. 125 

In fact, if water is not found in foods it is taken with them ; 
salads, apples, tomatoes, are eaten with no sensation of thirst, 
and the Neapolitans have a saying that in the melon there is 
" something to eat and something to drink and quite enough 
for washing." But dry flour or meal is not thought of as a 
finished article of diet. 

The question may be asked : Do we lose by taking water 
in additio?i to foods instead of as a part of them ? If we dry 
an apricot and, after the lapse of years, cook it in water, is it 
like a fresh apricot, from a dietetic point of view ? This ques- 
tion cannot be answered positively ; in drinking water, we 
usually face the possibility of bacterial contamination— less 
serious if the water is boiled or heated in cooking — and any 
large dilution of food may bring about slackening of digestive 
action in the stomach of the healthy adult. But apart from 
these considerations, the intimate admixture of water in living 
cells, which belongs to growth, commends itself to us as likely 
to provide a fair field for digestion. It cannot be said that 
observation or experiment has settled the point ; we know 
far less about it than even about the dietetic importance of 
inorganic and organic saline compounds. 



126 [PT. I. 



CHAPTER VIII. 
The Preparation and Cooking of Food. 

§ 49. In the preceding chapters we have considered 
certain questions : 

(i) What are those foodstuffs which are essential to 
the well-being of the human body? 

(2) What is the action of these foodstuffs in nourish- 
ing the body ? 

(3) What is the distribution of these foodstuffs 
in different raw articles of food ? 

It remains for us to discuss here the effect which cooking 
and other preparation of food for the table have upon the 
nutritive value of the foodstuffs present. In discussing this 
we are concerned with the physiological side of digestion 
and with its chemical side. For the action of the saliva, the 
gastric juice, and the pancreatic juice is a chemical action^ and 
these juices, removed from the body, will (under suitable 
conditions) digest in a cup or glass. But the pouring forth 
of these juices is a physiological action {secretion) : they are 
made by the living cells, and poured out by them into the 
mouth, the stomach, the intestine ; and this action can only 
be performed by living substance. Thus we have to ask, 
A. How is food affected by preparation as regards 
the chemical action of the juices upon it? B. How 



CHAP. VIII.] The Preparation and Cooking of Food. 127 

is the exciting or stimulating effect of food on the 
digestive organs affected by processes of preparation? 
Does food treated in the various ways call forth an 
abundant flow of secretion? We will make these questions 
the main divisions of the chapter. 



I. We will consider first, the relation betzveen the chemical 
actio?i of the digestive juices a?id the food as it is variously 
prepared. 

The fine division of food. 

§ 50. Under this heading we may place : 

(i) Chewing, with such knife and fork action as is 
supplementary among many European nations. 

(2) Mincing, with which we may associate braying (or 

pounding) in a mortar, and rubbing through a 
sieve. 

(3) Grating. 

(4) Whisking or beating. 

(5) Emulsification. 

(6) Dilution. 

Now we may say that all chemical action, at least all 
solution, goes on more rapidly and more thoroughly when the 
bodies concerned are finely divided. And this is true of the 
solution which accompanies digestion. If we take a piece 
of beef, *i inch cube, and take the same amount cut into 
1000 cubes, it is clear (cp. above, § 10) that the fragments offer 
ten times as great a surface, — the gastric juice can get at 
them better, — and the conditions, in this respect, are highly 
favourable for thorough and rapid digestion. Thus, all fine 
divisio?i is an aid to digestion. 



128 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

(i) Chewing. 

This is really all-sufficient to the primitive ancestors of 
man, and the use of the knife and fork and all the artificial 
modes of division which are before us belong to civilization, 
and probably to artificial diet, and slightly weakened digestion. 
But we cannot return to the condition of our tree-inhabiting 
ancestors, and thus, with advantage, we supplement the 
chewing of food. Nevertheless it is desirable to chew very 
thoroughly ; the slow admixture of saliva aids in the digestion 
of any cooked starch or dextrin in the food, and even when 
the food is proteid, thorough mastication is the natural 
action which prepares the way for digestion by the 
gastric juice. A case of death is recorded in which death 
was attributed to the action of very large lumps of beefsteak, 
found post morte7n in the stomach. Here absence of chewing 
proved fatal, although the food concerned was proteid. 

(2) Mincing. 

By this process the work of chewing is forestalled; we 
can see, then, that it is a process to which the food of the 
very young, the very old, and the weakly may be subjected 
with advantage. Pounding in a mortar and rubbing through 
a wire sieve may be looked on as extreme forms of mincing : 
in the latter, some fibre of meat is necessarily left behind, 
and this is not always a gain — indeed rubbing through a sieve 
belongs to aesthetic rather than to physiological cookery ; it 
is wasteful, but gives a velvety texture to the puree which 
passes through, that is much prized in the ingredients of cer- 
tain dishes. Mincing and pounding are however invaluable : 
Scotch collops^ boudin of rabbity chicken panada \— in the case of 
all these, digestion is easier than if roast beef, stewed rabbit, 
boiled chicken, were offered. 



1 To prepare these dishes with finish, it is needful to rub through the 



sieve. 



CHAP, viil] The Preparation and Cooking of Food. 129 

(3) Grating. 

With this we may associate grinding — the production of 
flour and meal — : it takes the place of mincing, when foods 
of suitable texture are used. Here again the difference of 
digestibility is marked ; coarse flour or meal is more digestible 
than the whole grain (it has been found by experiment that 
more of the proteids of peasmeal is absorbed than of the 
proteids of peas^), and a fine flour is more digestible than a 
coarse flour. Grated almonds are, in the same way, more 
open to the attack of the digestive fluids than almonds simply 
broken up by mastication : and grated cheese is far more 
digestible than the fatty, compressed, mass of raw cheese. 
To lunch satisfactorily on bread and cheese needs fairly good 
teeth and good digestion ; a cheese souffle., or fo?idu has less 
compressed nutriment, but is far more digestible. Again, a 
hard boiled egg is a recognised tax on the civilized stomach, 
but in an omelette the yolk and white of the eggs are so inter- 
mixed that no large mass of either remains. This intermixture 
however can hardly be properly included under the heading 
" grating " ; it is rather transitional to 

(4) Whisking, beating, and aeration. 

We may indeed almost regard this as a special form of 
grating or mincing. Instead of having solids separated into 
tiny fragments which form a powder or flour, we have glairy 
or viscid fluids beaten up into what is practically a sponge, 
holding air. Thus the substance beaten is formed into little 
compartments or artificial cells, all having but thin walls and 
all easy of access by the digestive fluids. We may have 
gelatine thus broken up (as in lemon sponge), and carrying 
with it some nutritious or stimulating matter ; we may have 
frothy zvhite of egg (raw white of egg is difficult of digestion 
although rich in nourishment) ; we may have cream as in any 
of the familiar whips. The warmth of the stomach must alter 

' See above, § 57. 
B. Q 



130 Domestic EcoJtomy. [PT. I. 

the condition of the cream and gelatine soon after they have 
been swallowed ; still it is a frothy, permeable mass which 
the gastric juice encounters, not an unbroken block of solid 
or liquid. And because the white of egg is more glairy 
and tenacious, more susceptible of this "whisking" than is 
the yolk, therefore in souffles, in invalid puddings, in delicate 
cakes, in an omelette soufflee, the white is whisked alone, and 
mixed only at the last moment with the other ingredients 
which it is to support and make "hght." It is really 
whisking " with a difference " that gives us the proper effect 
in bread, cakes, pastry, of all kinds. Either air — as in puff 
pastry — or some gas— carbonic acid gas, as in short pastry, in 
cakes, and in bread — is introduced, and what would, without 
this aeration, be a dense mass, hard of penetration, becomes 
a porous substance into which the digestive fluids can make 
their way. 

(5) Emulsification. 

This is the Jine division of fatty particles and therefore is 
related to the results of beating or whisking which we have 
just considered; the nature of oil is such that we cannot 
readily "froth" it as we do the tenacious white of egg\ 
but we can beat it into minute particles, separated by air — 
as in the case of butter beaten to a cream — or by some 
non-mixing fluid. Milk is an example of the latter form 
of emulsion, and cream is milk containing a disproportionally 
large amount of milk fat ; cod liver oil is often emulsified 
before it is given to invalids ; Cremor hordeatus and other 
preparations have, as their basis, fat, thus made easy for 
digestion. Salad oil, if drunk without preparation, would 
run into irregular masses in the stomach, and be emulsified 
later by the pancreatic juice ; in the sauces mayonnaise, 
hollandaise, and their derivatives, some of this emulsification 
is done in the kitchen^. 

1 It will be remembered that in cream we do not deal with pure, oil.. 

2 See above, § 24. 



CHAP. VIII.] TJie Preparation and Cooking of Food. 131 

(6) Dilution. 

It is really chiefly in connection with the natural food, 
milk, that this process is important. Cow's milk is clotted 
by the rennet of the stomach, and forms the jelly which we 
know as curds. But the firmness of the jelly depends (with 
rennet of a given power) on the concentration of the milk, 
and diluted milk does not clot firmly. Now the massive clot 
is not easily digested, therefore to avoid its formation is 
sometimes desirable in the case of invalids and infants. To 
dilute milk for a baby with boiled water or thin barley-water, 
is a very general practice, and many invalids take diluted 
milk. 

There are, further, certain processes which are almost a 
mixture of dilution and whisking, the processes by which a 
syllabub and koumiss are made. A syllabub is really milk, 
frothed up with wine or spirit and flavouring ; koumiss is, in 
like manner, highly frothy milk, but here alcohol and carbonic 
acid have been introduced by the action of yeast upon sugar. 
No solid clot is formed from milk taken after this treatment ; 
koumiss and syllabub are related to fresh milk much as is 
beaten white of egg to the native "white." We can see that 
syllabub must be a more digestible food than raw milk or 
than junket, and koumiss — a stimulant as well as a food — 
has been used to support life in certain cases of great ex- 
haustion. 

We repeat that in itself, the fine division of foods is an 
aid to digestion ; it furthers the chemical action of the digestive 
fluids. 

2. The effect of heat upon foods. 

§ 51. All digestion of food by man is best carried out at 
the temperature of the human body (36 "9° C.) ; such moderate 
warmth is wholly beneficial both to the chemical action of 

9—2 



132 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

solution, and, as we shall see later, to the pouring out of the 
digestive juices. What concerns us now is the effect upon 
subsequent digestion of a much greater degree of 
heat, applied to foods. We shall find that this effect 
varies ; in the case of some foods heat aids digestion ; in the 
case of other foods, digestion is hindered ; occasionally, foods 
are deprived of, or made poor in, certain of their constituents 
when they are cooked. And there is one action of heat which 
is not directly related to digestion, but which has so important 
a bearing on nutrition that it must be named here. This is 
sterilization. The meaning of the term has been explained 
at length in chapter 11., but we repeat, that in sterilized tissue 
or fluid all life is destroyed ; therefore any bacteria which 
might have been present before heating are killed. The risk 
of infection from any disease-producing bacteria is thus much 
reduced ; thorough cooking is one great safeguard against 
the spread of disease by means of food. 

(i) Heat as an aid to digestion. 

All foods containing raw starch are made digestible by 
the action of heat. Raw starch is digested very slowly by 
human saliva or pancreatic juice ; starch paste (or cooked 
starch) is rapidly digested, and dextrin is a bye-product or an 
intermediate product in the change from starch to sugar. 
When starch is boiled, stewed for a long time, fried or baked, 
the change to starch paste, or to cooked starch, takes place. 
When dry heat is used there is often a change to dextrin 
(see above, § 23) as well : this is the case in the crust of 
well-baked bread, of cakes, and probably in that of pies ; in 
pulled bread, in toast, and in many biscuits. 

From this point alone, we can hardly over-estimate the 
importance of thorough cooking of starchy foods ; potatoes, 
porridge, all breads, all milk puddings, all pastry, and prepa- 
rations such as cornflour, arrowroot, revalenta, lose greatly in 
nutritive value if any starch is left in the raw state. Thorough 



CHAP. VIII.] TJu Preparation and Cooking of Food. 133 

boiling, baking, or frying, or long-continued cooking at a 
lower temperature is essential. When digestion is very 
delicate, then the further change to dextrin is desirable, and it 
is mainly to ensure this change that doctors recommend to 
dyspeptic patients thin toast, slices of dry bread " pulled " or 
browned, rusks and other highly cooked foods. It is a change 
to dextrin too, that is brought about in baking flour after the 
fashion recommended for babies' food. Prolonged heating 
not only cooks the starch in flour, but turns some of it to 
dextrin, and the flour in its altered state may be mixed with 
a baby's milk at such time (say 6 months) as supplementary 
starchy food has become desirable. 

The beneficial action of heat upon the cellulose of foods 
is less well-established, but the point is worth brief considera- 
tion. We have seen in § 28 that the digestive fluids of man 
do not dissolve cellulose, but that a portion of what is present 
in food is broken up by some of the bacteria which always 
inhabit the human intestine. Probably this action is not of 
great nutritional importance and there is no direct proof that 
it is furthered by the previous cooking of cellulose. What 
this cooking certainly does, however, is to make limp and 
flaccid the cells which, in uncooked fruit and vegetables, were 
tense — or in the words of botanists, turgid, — to rupture the 
walls very generally, and to kill and coagulate the proto- 
plasmical contents, and to make digestible any starch which 
may be present. And here we have both a gain and a loss : 
the rupture of the cells, and death of the cell-contents makes 
it easier for all fluids and thus for the digestive secretions to 
attack them, but, on the other hand, coagulated proteid is, 
as we have said, hard to dissolve. And an amoeba sends 
its digestive fluid readily through the wall of a swallowed 
vegetable cell, and readily dissolves the cell substance which 
lies within. 

The point is a little obscure, but practically we know that 
tomatoes, apples, pears, plums, are far easier of digestion after 



134 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

they have been cooked, and none of these contain starch 
when ripe. Thus the increase in digestibility must be con- 
nected with action on the cellulose walls or their watery con- 
tents. And of one thing we are sure ; the disintegrating and 
softening effect is very important indirectly. The flesh of 
chicken or the flesh of fish is soft enough to be rubbed and 
pounded to d^ puree in the fresh state ; but hardly any vegetable 
can be treated thus. It is only after long stewing or boiling 
that carrots, haricot-beans, artichokes, chestnuts, and many 
other " vegetables " are sufficiently soft to be pounded into 
their respective purees. 

It cannot be claimed that the action of heat upon fats 
furthers their digestion importantly. It is true that the work 
of melting the harder fats may, by preliminary heating, be 
spared to the alimentary canal, but this is no great gain as 
compared with the gain of previous emulsification. And it 
is discounted, when digestion as a whole is regarded, by the 
fact that melted fat, penetrating the particles of accompanying 
foods, makes them difficult to digest. Hot buttered toast 
and cakes are, as we know, unsuitable for the dyspeptic. 

Lastly, we must speak of the action of heat which is not 
all a gain, — the action by which solutions, infusions, and 
decoctions of food are made. This is helpful up to a 
certain point, for liquids are easier to digest than solids, — 
the digesting fluids can mix with them and act on them 
more easily ; — but, if the heat applied is great, then the action 
on proteids which we are about to discuss takes place, 
they do not go into solution, or if in solution they 
are thrown down as insoluble substance. This loss 
or precipitation of proteids is a serious loss from the point 
of view of nutrition, but other constituents do remain in a 
fluid which has been boiled ; thus in a decoction of meat 
the salts of meat are there, often gelatine has been formed 
in the boiling from its precursor connective tissue (cp. above, 
§ 28), and there are members of that group of substances 



CHAP. VIII.] The Preparation and Cooking of Food. 135 

known as the "extractives" of muscle'. Of the importance 
of saline matter we have already spoken, and we saw in § 28 
that gelatine, if it cannot be regarded as a food, is at least 
important in affecting the chemical changes of the body ; it 
is a proteid-sparer. The extractives kreatin, xanthin, inosite, 
lactic acid and other complex, soluble, organic bodies, are not 
foods, but they have a stimulating action on the body, com- 
parable rather to that of tea. Briefly, we may say that so- 
lutions or infusions made from slightly warmed meat are both 
nutritious and digestible; that decoctions (and to them the 
various broths belong) are very poor in dissolved proteids 
but are still stimulating, and are not without their importance 
in nutrition. And in all these cases the body can readily avail 
itself of what the liquid concerned has to offer because of its 
existence in solution. If precipitated proteids are present (as 
in the brown sediment common in beef-tea) then, although not 
readily soluble, their solution is aided by fine division. 

A word may be added touching infusions and decoctions 
of vegetable matter. Many of these are in no sense food, but 
are valued for their stimulating or medicinal qualities ; we 
may instance tea, senna-tea, bran-tea, &c. Others are dilute 
starchy foods, and for them, thorough cooking is wholly a 
gain ; in this group we may include the various gruels, barley- 
water, arrowroot-water and rice-water. Others again contain 
salts, soluble organic substances and potent flavouring, often 
due to some essential oil. In none do we find any important 
amount of proteid ; we have seen earlier that although small 
amounts of proteids are present in all parts of all plants it is 
only in certain reserve organs that the percentage is high, and, 
whether the amount is small or great in the fresh state, the 
proteids are made insoluble (see below) by that long-continued 
cooking which is requisite to carry into solution the ingredients 
for which most vegetable extracts are valued. 

1 See above, § 32. 



136 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

(2) Heat as a hindrance to digestion^. 

With the exceptions of albumoses, peptones, and derived 
albumens, all proteids are changed by the action of 
heat. At varying temperatures they are precipitated from 
their solutions and in an especially insoluble form as coagu- 
lated proteids. But albumoses, peptones and derived 
albumens are but rarely met with in ordinary food — they 
belong rather to the products of digestion — so we may safely 
say that the great mass of proteid food taken by man is made 
less readily digestible by cooking. This is true of proteids 
whether boiled, steamed, baked, braised, or fried ; and 
even stewing is rarely if ever carried out at a temperature 
below the coagulating point of albumens and globulins. It 
must not be supposed that proteid food is made actually 
indigestible by cooking; the healthy human gastric and in- 
testinal juices can still cope with it successfully; but, when 
the most readily digestible proteid nutriment is necessary, 
then we give meat-juice^ raw-beef tea^ or raw scraped and 
pounded meat., spread into sandwiches. And it is advantageous 
that at all times proteid matter should not be over- 
cooked. To this end stewing and braising are at their 
best carried out at a temperature below the boiling point 
of water ; " boiled " eggs if treated with real care are also 
kept below the boiling point of water, for all the proteids in 
egg coagulate at or under 70° C. In roasting, baking, and 
grining, the heat applied at first is great, so that a dense, 
coagulated, outer layer or shell is formed; then, at a lowered 
temperature., that gradual cooking — we might almost call it in- 
ternal stewing — goes on which shall make tender all the flesh 
bounded by this dense layer. And carefully-made beef-tea 
is very lightly cooked (cp. above). 

^ The understanding of this paragraph will be clearer if § 23 be re-read 
here. 



CHAP. VIII.] The Preparation and Cooking of Food. 137 

(3) Heat as an age?it in depriving foods of various of 
their constituents. 

Loss of water. This takes place in all dry cooking; 
the "steaming" of toast as it is made, is familiar and the 
drying of meat and bread ; and besides water which escapes 
into the air, we have water which helps to form gravies. 

Loss of fat. All dripping is fat, lost to meat in process 
of cooking. The fat is melted by the heat, and exudes in 
drops, from its containing cells. In an analysis given by 
Church, the composition of a cooked mutton-chop with and 
without its own gravy and dripping are recorded, and in 
this it appears that 6 parts p. c. of fat are lost in cooking. 
The amount must vary with the nature of the meat and the 
thoroughness of the cooking, but the quantity of dripping 
which accumulates in an average household testifies to its 
importance. 

Loss of salts, organic and inorganic, and of other soluble 
organic bodies. All those ingredients which we named 
as a gain to infusions or decoctions are a loss if we consider, 
not the broth, but the meat or vegetables. In fact what the 
bouilli yields to the bouillon, it yields at its own cost. And 
for the most part, we do not eat meat or vegetables which 
have been made to yield largely of their substance to fluid, 
but some loss is inevitable in the case of all boiled 

food. 

Burning. When food is exposed to very great heat it is 
burnt, and volatile compounds, products of combustion, escape 
into the air. When the heat is still great but insufficient to 
burn completely we get charring of organic matter. " Burnt " 
toast, "burnt" crust, grilled steak that bears the "marks of 
the fire " ; all these have lost some of the constituents of their 
organic compounds with partial setting free of the carbon. 
And short of this point, we have the formation of those 
brown compounds, rich in flavour, which belong to the " out- 
side" of browned meats or vegetables. So little is known 



138 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

of these that we cannot say definitely that their formation is 
associated with loss of substance, but it is highly probable 
that this is so. 

Loss of ferments. Any ferments present in food are 
killed by the action of heat in cooking, although their death 
may not be accompanied by any actual loss of substance. 
Tripe, sweetbreads, oysters — and with them all animals not 
deprived of digestive glands — contain digestive ferments when 
they are fresh ; these are killed by cooking, and the same 
fate attends such vegetable ferments as diastase or the peptic 
ferment found in the juice of the papaw-tree ( Carica papaya). 

We see, then, that the relation of heat to the digestion of 
foods is complex. At a gentle heat, i.e. at the temperature 
of the human body, all the processes of human digestion go 
on best, and the same temperature is most favourable for 
making solutions (watery or saline) of meat. But while great 
heat (prolonged boiling or "simmering") is all a gain as 
regards the digestion of starch (for it makes starch digestible, 
or turns it to bodies still more soluble, dextrin and sugar), 
there are few proteids found in foods which are not made 
less easy of digestion by heating. 

3. The effect of cold upon the digestion of foods. 

§ 52. This is really only important inasmuch as it lowers the 
temperature far beneath that at which digestion goes on best. 
Thus, the labour of warming food which has been 
eaten, falls upon the digestive organs and the blood 
circulating within their walls. If a cream ice be taken, 
the ice is soon melted, but melted to a very cold fluid, and 
though digestion does go on slowly in the cold, it does not 
become energetic until the temperature is raised. It is, then, 
inadvisable to eat ices when full digestion holds sway, e.g. 
at the end of dinner ; and large draughts of cold fluid — water, 
milk, alcohol — should not be taken with food. 



CHAP. VIII.] The Preparation and Cooking of Food. 1 39 



4. The effect of mixture upo?i the digest io?i of foods. 

§ 53. We can see that if, by mixing, one food is hidden 
away in, or coated by another, its digestion is hindered until such 
time as, by digestion, or some removal of the former, the latter 
is set free. This sort of mixing does occur in frying, when 
particles of (usually) starchy food are coated with fat; and 
we cannot doubt that, making a dish more nutritious, such 
treatment does also make it more difficult of digestion. Some 
difficulty in digestion is no great drawback where the food 
of the healthy is concerned, but fried dishes are unsuitable 
for invaUds' diet. A mixing of foods which is less intimate 
occurs when beef and potatoes, beans and bacon, and a 
thousand other dietetic combinations are eaten, and this 
mixing is advantageous. The earliest natural food of infant 
man is a mixture, and since all food eaten excites the flow 
of all the digestive juices, it seems that only special reasons 
can make it desirable not to tax them all. 



5. The effect of food preservatives upon the digestion 

of foods. 

§ 54. This varies with the method of preservation : some- 
times a large quantity of one form of food is the preservative ; 
this is the case with condensed milk, to which much sugar 
is added. Sometimes salt is in excess; sometimes the 
meat, fruits or vegetables are preserved by drying, or drying 
with smoking; sometimes by excluding the air after much 
heating; sometimes by the injection of antiseptics. There 
is no doubt that salting and drying render food less digestible, 
and that antiseptics do not form a desirable ingredient in 
food; the various tinned meats, vegetables and fruits, co?t- 
sidered solely from the point of view of their preservation, stand 



140 Domestic Econo7ny. [PT. I. 

in much the same relation to digestive activity as do other 
somewhat over-cooked foods, the cooking being that of moist 
heat. 



In the preceding paragraphs we have attempted to group, 
as general statements, the most important facts established 
touching the relationship of cooking to digestion. We will 
now, as a recapitulation, treat the facts from the opposite point 
of view, and summarize the changes which belong to the more 
familiar processes of cookery. 



Boiling and Steaming. 

§ 55. Here, the outer layers of proteid food are coagu- 
lated by contact with the boiling water or steam'. The inner 
part of the food is cooked more slowly (but still coagulated), 
protected from the loss of its fluid constituents by the hardened 
outer layers. There is a certain escape of salts and soluble 
organic matter into the surrounding water in boiling ; in 
steaming this loss is minimized. Long-continued boihng forms 
gelatine in the connective (gelatiniferous) tissue of meat : 
and then dissolves it in the surrounding water. 

Fats are melted and in part set free if boiling water 
surrounds the food. 

Starch is burst and made digestible ; in prolonged 
boiling some starch becomes dextrin. 

Cellulose is softened, and partially broken down, so that 
it no longer forms intact cell-walls. 

^ The reference here is to the cooking of fresh meat ; salted meat — 
already hardened by salting — is placed in cold water and heated gradually 
as the temperature rises to the boiling point. 



\ 



CHAP. VIII.] The Preparation and Cooking of Food. 141 

Stewing and Braising. 

Here the proteids are coagulated, fats are melted, 
starch grains are burst and made digestible, gelatine is 
extracted. The processes differ from boiling and steaming 
however, in that a gentle heat is applied throughout, and 
no effort is made to form any outside layer of quickly coagu- 
lated proteid. Occasionally, flavour and aroma are developed 
by a very light frying which precedes stewing (in jugged hare, 
stewed rabbit, various meat stews), but this is solely for the 
development of flavour: the gravy which forms in stew is 
eaten with the meat, and therefore no nourishment which 
passes into the gravy is lost ; there is no need to imprison 
it within the meat. In braising, distinct flavour is given to 
the meat by the fact that it is steam rising through vegetables 
which is the cooking agent. As meat, before it is stewed, is 
lightly fried, so meat, after it is braised, is crisped by dry heat ; 
but before this happens there has been no effort to imprison 
the "juices" of meat. 

Roasting and Baking. 

These are brought about by dry heat either in the oven 
or before a fire ; as in boiling, a crust of coagulated substance 
is formed on the outside, and the inner portions are stewed 
more slowly within this ; proteids are coagulated, fat is 
melted and partially escapes, gelatine is formed, and also 
partially escapes. And there is, further, a surface change 
which we call "browning," which carried far enough is 
"burning." This produces savoury but probably indigestible 
compounds from the meats, sweets, and vegetables concerned ; 
and makes food cooked in this way more appetizing, but, on 
other grounds, less suitable for weak digestions. Starch is 
made soluble by roasting and baking and is partly turned 
to dextrin. 



142 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 



Grilling and Broiling. 

These are practically the same process, and are closely 
related to roasting. The formation of the outer coagulated 
shell is more complete, the escape of "gravy" is minimized, — 
for the heat applied is fierce, and the pieces of food to be 
cooked (usually fish or meat) are relatively small, and there- 
fore easily penetrated by heat. 



Making of Soups and Broths. 

We may say that this is the converse of boiling ; in 
boiling meat, we seek to prevent the escape of its constituents 
into the surrounding water ; in making soup or " stock " we 
seek to get as much as possible out of the meat or 
vegetables and into the fluid. Thus the meat and vegetables 
are cut into small pieces, are placed in cold water (usually 
with salt), and are slowly brought to the boil. This is in 
order that a warm, saline extract (which dissolves all that 
water dissolves and more besides) may be formed, that as 
much as possible may be dissolved of the various proteids 
before their coagulation point is reached. When this is 
reached they are precipitated it is true, but precipitated in 
small fragments' in the soup and not coagulated in situ in 
the meat. This coagulation is inevitable if any starch present 
is to be cooked, and if vegetable cell-walls are to be softened 
and disintegrated, and the long-continued boiling or simmering 
which does this, also carries on the extraction of gelatine. 

^ It is noticeable that in clear soup all these proteid particles are 
deliberately removed by "clearing"; only salts, soluble organic substances, 
flavouring and an insignificant amount of gelatine remain ; of all soups, it 
is the least nourishing. 



CHAP. VIII.] The Preparatio7t and Cooking of Food. 143 

Fluids that "jelly" have always been subjected to long 
cooking, and rarely contain proteid food. 

In a puree more than the liquid extract is present ; the 
liquid is thick with suspended particles — the solids of 
the soup rubbed through a sieve. 



B. 

2. We will turn now to the second of the main divisions 
of the chapter, and consider the relation of the cooking of 
food to the physiological side of digestion, asking, Hoiv does 
the cooking, or other preparation of food affect the fiow of the 
digestive juices ? 

§ 56. Food is the most powerful agent in calling forth a flow 
of digestive secretion ; the sight, smell, or thought of food 
often makes the saliva flow abundantly — the " mouth waters " ; 
the chewing of savoury food calls forth not only saliva but 
gastric juice, and that before any food has been swallowed ; 
the entrance of food into the stomach arouses a flow not 
only of gastric juice but of pancreatic juice, although the 
pancreatic juice acts in and belongs to the intestine and not 
to the stomach. In fact the living constituents— the cells — ■ 
of all the digestive glands are governed by the nervous system ; 
they pour forth their secretion as a result of impulses travelling 
along nerves. But if we recall for a moment such a nervous 
impulse as that which makes a striated muscle contract, we 
remember that it may be started directly, as by electrical 
excitation of the nerve (motor) going to the muscle ; or re/iexly, 
as when some nerve going to the brain from an appropriate 
sensitive surface (say the retina) is disturbed. The disturbance 
of such a "sensory " nerve sets up action in the central nervous 
system (brain, spinal cord), one result of which is a further 
disturbance set up in the particular "motor" nerve we are 
considering (say the nerve to the eyelid), a disturbance which 



144 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

travels down the nerve and makes the attached muscle con- 
tract, — as in winking. In a similar way the nerves which bring 
about, not movement of muscles but secretion by glands, 
may be excited directly but are also called into action 
reflexly. And it is this reflex action that the taste, smell, 
or sight of food brings about ; nervous impulses or dis- 
turbances started in the mouth, in the nose, in the eyes, 
travel up to the central nervous system and then start other 
nervous impulses which travel down to the digestive organs 
and rouse the secreting cells. These cells are further and 
similarly roused when food is actually in that part of the 
alimentary canal to which they belong, and digestible food 
is more effective — more powerful — as a disturbance, than 
substance that cannot be digested. 

These facts are of importance because they may be made 
the text of a sermon upon dainty, well-finished, and appetizing 
cookery. We cannot doubt that food which is pleasant to 
the sight, to smell and to the taste is a stronger indirect 
excitant of all the nerves which can bring about flow of 
digestive fluids than is raw or ill-dressed food. Of course 
the term "appetizing" has no absolute meaning for all men 
and all times; the food that is eaten with relish by the 
Patagonians and the Esquimaux could not be set upon an 
English dinner-table ; but its meaning for our own race and 
day needs little explanation. It is to produce this quality 
that frying, grilling, roasting are used so widely; there is no 
doubt that raw proteid food, minced, or extracted, would be 
the most digestible form of proteid food'; that fats — to this 
end — should be warmed and emulsified ; that starches should 
be cooked by thorough boiling. But we sacrifice something 
of digestibility to the pleasures of the palate, and this, within 
limits, rightly, so long as we deal with digestion that is not 

' Raw meat is digestible, but dangerous unless it is chosen with care; 
it may contain disease-producing bacteria and other noxious parasites. 



CHAP. VIII.] TJie Preparation and Cooking of Food. 145 

specially weakened. That pleasurable sensations of smell and 
taste should lead to a generous outpouring of digestive secre- 
tions is more important than that all food should be submitted 
to the action of those secretions in its most digestible form. 
It is no hardship for the healthy to deal with food that is 
somewhat hard of digestion, and even insoluble residues are 
valuable up to a certain point, in aiding the wave-like peri- 
staltic movements of the intestines \ 

With the food of the very young, the very old, and the 
sick, the case is different ; we deal with digestion by cells 
which have not yet grown strong, or, having been strong, are 
now weakened. Hence that they should be provided with 
food which can be readily absorbed, is of high importance. 
But in order that its work may be well done, attractiveness 
is not to be neglected. Indeed the preparation of this food 
demands especial care ; for the admissible means of attraction 
are more limited; "lumpiness" in a cup of gruel or arrowroot 
is as disastrous from a physiological as from an aesthetic point 
of view. We remember that not only is secretion of the 
digestive fluids under nervous control, but there is a nervous 
machinery which brings about vomiting; and distasteful food, 
promptly rejected, can have little chance of nourishing. 

The words just written refer more especially to changes 
in texture, flavour, &c., which cooking and dressing produce 
in the foods themselves. And they may be extended in part 
to the use of flavourings and condiments. These are 
used with care and reserve in nursery and sick room cookery, 
and in certain special cases their use is to be regretted even 
where food for the adult is concerned. Thus, to eat vinegar 
with starchy food, is to strike a blow at such digestive power 
as the saliva possesses, and the inordinate use of pickles and 
other irritating condiments inflames the mucous membrane 
(the internal surface) of the stomach and bowel. 

The intelligent eater, however, does not prize such excess, 
^ See above, § 28. 
B. 10 



146 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

but rather that delicate touch of flavour which is given by 
the restrained use of condiments and flavourings. The best 
curries are not exceedingly hot ; we should be conscious, but 
not more than conscious, of the presence of cloves and of 
lemon, of vanilla and of tarragon in their appropriate places : 
that flavouring of a sauce is most successful which, "half 
suspected, animates the whole." 

§ 57' We may perhaps illustrate these general statements by 
brief examination and comparison of a day's diet suitable for 
convalescence, and a carefully chosen dinner suitable for the 
healthy. The menu for dinner is one taken from Sir Henry 
Thompson's work on Food and Feeding. 

Diet for convalescent who is ordered to take light food. 

8 A.M. Cup of cafe au lait or cup of freshly 
infused tea. 
Toast, toasted slowly and thoroughly. But- 
tered when cold. 
10.30 A.M. Beef tea, cooked lightly; fingers of dry toast. 
1.30 P.M. Fillets of plaice or sole, steamed. Bread 
and butter (not new bread). 
Sago pudding or baked apple. 
5 P.M. Freshly infused tea. 

Toast or biscuits. 
8 P.M. Oatmeal gruel with milk or Bread and milk. 

What points are characteristic in such a scheme of diet ? 

We notice in the first place that the quantities are small. 
The convalescent is doing no active work ; his digestive glands 
are probably acting feebly : we do not, then, tax them severely 
at any one moment ; but, on the other hand, the intervals 
between meals are shorter than is advisable in health. 

In the second place the food is very simply prepared and 
in such fashion that easy digestion is aimed at ; all the food- 



CHAP, viil] The Preparation and Cooking of Food, i/^y 

stuffs are present, but fats are used with care. One meal — 
luncheon— has a fluid for its main feature, and this if cooked 
lightly will contain extractives and salts in solution and finely 
precipitated proteid in suspension. In the sago pudding the 
yolk and white of egg are separated and the white, beaten in 
at the last moment before cooking, gives porosity to the 
whole mass. Moreover the sago is "fine" sago and cooked 
thoroughly. It is fine oatmeal also that is used for the gruel, 
and of this only the finest part ; all the coarse particles are 
allowed to "settle" before cooking; and gruel at its best is a 
bland, almost gelatinous liquid, faintly flavoured with sugar, 
lemon, or, if it be permitted, butter. In the baked apple the 
cellulose cell-walls are thoroughly softened and much broken ; 
valuable organic salts are present (for little is lost in baking) 
and the flavour is delicate and distinctive. The toast is thin 
and thoroughly cooked, so that no soft spongy indigestible 
central layers remain; and there is change to dextrin in the 
external layers. 

Thirdly, the tea is freshly infused ; it is long stewing of the 
tea which gives it the constituents most harmful to digestion ; 
tea which has infused only for two minutes is as refreshing and 
stimulating as the tannin-laden product of a day's "stewing." 
The nutritive value of cafe' au lait is considerable, thanks to 
the milk it contains, and probably the coffee diluted by milk is 
less potent as a nerve stimulant than if taken strong, and black. 

Me7iu of Dinner. 
Soup. Paysanne. 

Fish. Fillets of turbot a la ravigote. 

Remove. Braised veal and macedoine of vegetables. 
Efitree. Scalloped oysters. 

Roast. Wild duck. 

Entremets. Stewed celery in gravy. 

Apricots with rice. 
Savoury. Caviare. 

lO — 2 



148 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

We notice first that a clear soup introduces the dinner. 
Now a soup, cleared by modern methods, is exceedingly poor 
in nourishment ; but it is pleasant to the eye and palate, and 
slightly stimulating. Useless as a meal alone, therefore, it is 
a fitting introduction to an abundant dinner. 

In the second place we see that hardly any article of food 
in this menu is prepared without dressing or accompaniment ; 
only the wild duck stands alone, complete in itself. That 
oysters should be served in any way but aic riaturel may be 
regretted by some diners, and there is undoubtedly a loss of 
digestibility in cooking : but on the other hand cooked oysters 
are less dangerous as a source of bacterial infection. The 
dressing of the veal is all a gain ; veal is the somewhat 
indigestible flesh of an immature animal, less full-flavoured 
than mature meats ; and the slow cooking, in fragrant vapours 
from vegetables, is a happy treatment. The final crisping by 
" top-heat " probably lessens digestibility, but is certainly 
welcome to the palate. 

Thirdly, we see that the amount of food offered is large ; 
such a meal, taken in its entirety, should follow a long period 
(say five hours) of abstinence from food, a period which also 
includes some form of activity. The menu is, however, a 
thoroughly good one of its kind : there is hardly a dish in it 
(with the exception of the veal and the almost negligible 
caviare) which might not be offered singly to a convalescent 
somewhat more advanced than the invalid we have imagined 
above. There is change of "colour" in the dishes, there is 
variation of flavour ; the excellence of the simple roast is 
allowed its full effect 3 the entremets are simple. 



CHAP. IX.] 149 



CHAPTER IX. 

Clothing. 

§ 58. To deal with clothing as an adonunent^ demands 
an excursion into the domain of aesthetics which would be 
out of place here. We will therefore consider clothing only 
from the point of view of utility. 

In this consideration we will divide the subject into two 
main sections, but it must be remembered that the division 
is purely arbitrary and made only for convenience of dis- 
cussion. 

The first section (A) deals with the mechanical effects of 
clothing ; the second section (B) with its physiological effects. 
In one sense, indeed, the mechanical effects are physiological 
also, for they are only important to us in as far as they help 
or hinder physiological processes ; but in the sense in which 
we shall take the words, the distinction is just, for the physio- 
logical effects, grouped together in section B, are direct ; 
whereas the effects described in section A are mechanical 
directly, and indirectly, physiological. 



A. The mechanical effects of clothing. 

§ 59« We distinguish here the effects of weight and of 
pressure, and we may note, in passing, that these effects 
are largely independent of the nature of the materials 
of which clothes are made. A very tight garter may 



150 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

be made of silk, of wool, of cotton, or of leather : as far as 
the pressure it exerts is concerned, the effects are the same 
in each case. A gown may carry many pounds' weight of jet, 
or it may be weighted round its edge with lead : a slight 
difference in mechanical effect is produced, because, in the 
former case, the weight is more evenly distributed ; but this 
difference is unimportant compared with the total effect in 
each case. 

Effects of pressure. 

§ 60. Pressure is exerted by all clothing that binds or 
confines. We ought strictly then, to speak of all "fitting" 
clothes. But for practical purposes we need only speak of 
clothes which sometimes exert excessive pressure, — of garters, 
collars, belts, boots, stays, — and with the last-named we may 
count such a garment as a tight and heavily whaleboned 
bodice. How do these garments act? In the first place, 
when organs can be displaced, the pressure displaces 
them. There is probably hardly an adult foot in England 
among the " well-shod " which shows the great toe and the 
second toe in the relative positions in which they stand on 
the foot of a healthy baby ; in a baby the great toe is almost 
"opposable," that is, it can almost be used as a thumb is 
used, but after long practice of the habits of civilized life this 
power is lost, and the use of boots, which are so unlike the 
foot in shape, often crushes together the first and second toes. 
The organs in the abdomen, and to a less degree those in the 
chest, can also be displaced ; so it comes about that, when 
tight waist-belts or stays are constantly worn, the diaphragm 
has not its right play, the lungs are pressed upwards, expand 
feebly themselves, and probably impede the heart ; the liver, 
stomach, and bowel do not have their natural relations*. 

^ In a somewhat different way, unnatural pressure is set up by the use 
of high heels to boots. This pressure alters the range of action of the 
striated muscles of the foot and leg, and upsets the healthy balance or 



CHAP. IX.] Clothing. 1 5 1 

In the second place, pressui-e has very important action 
upon the blood-vessels of the body. We remember that the heart 
does hard work ; that it drives the blood through the arteries, 
through the minute capillaries (which offer great resistance 
to the flow), through the widening veins, back to itself,— for 
the circulation is a closed circuit. 

We remember too that the arteries, even down to their 
small branches, the arterioles, are highly muscular, that 
they grow narrow and widen through the contraction and 
relaxation of the unstriped muscles in their walls. Now the 
proper circulation of the blood depends on the one 
hand upon efficient action of the heart, and on the 
other hand upon the healthy condition and efficient 
action of the walls of the blood-vessels. In the healthy 
condition, and with a good heart-beat, the capillaries allow 
interchange between the blood within their delicate walls and 
the tissues outside, and one important outcome of this inter- 
change is the formation of lymph. Lymph is the fluid which 
moistens all the cells of the body, and is at once the medium 
by which they are suppHed with food, and drained of waste 
matters. The healthy arteries are deUcately responsive to 
the needs of that part of the body in which they run; and 
under the stimulus of nerves, they narrow or widen according 
as a scanty or abundant blood-supply is desirable for the 
moment. Moreover, by means of the nerves which run to and 
fro between themselves and the central nervous system, there 
is ready interaction among all the arteries of the body : so 
that (for example) events taking place in the brain may affect 
the condition of the small arteries in the intestine. The 
healthy veins play a more passive part ; they can shrink and 
expand slightly, and so accommodate themselves to varying 
quantities of blood, but they are to be looked upon primarily 

relation between various muscles of the abdomen and the back, and 
secondarily, by the consequent unnatural attitude of the back, may affect 
the nervous system generally, and even the sight. 



152 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

as channels by which the blood can return freely to the heart ; 
it is of the first importance that they should be patent or 
open tubes, i.e. that this return of the blood should be easy 
and complete. 

Now of these blood-vessels, the arteries are probably the 
least affected by external pressure ; they do not generally run 
near the surface of the body, and their walls are made stout 
by the presence of muscular and elastic fibres. The ca- 
pillaries are pressed upon when the organs in which they run 
are compressed, but it is the veins — thin-walled, and lying 
comparatively near the surface — which are the first to 
feel pressure from the outside. 

"\^'hen tight boots or tight gloves are worn, capillaries of 
the hand or foot are narrowed, for the tissues in which they 
run are compressed. Cold hands and cold feet are the result 
of this, for it is abundant and vigorous blood-supply which 
gives us the feeling of warmth. 

When the pressure is on a narrower zone. i.e. when we 
have a high^ tight collar^ or a tight garter^ it is more especially 
the veins that are touched; swollen feet (following on excessive 
lymph-formation, due to obstructed venous outflow), varicose 
veins, and again, coldness of the extremities ; these are some 
of the penalties paid. 

Pressure round the waist or upon the abdomen needs 
especial note ; excessive pressure is, of course, bad ; the blood- 
supply of the important abdominal organs is diminished, their 
nutrition is affected ; digestion, kidney activity, and other 
physiological activities slacken. But slight pressure does 
aid in the emptying of the great abdominal veins ; it aids 
the venous blood-flow to the heart, it is said even to increase 
the heart's output. Must we then accept or even urge the 
use of waist-belts and stays ? For the healthy human being — 
No. If we apply such pressure, we apply a pressure which, 
at the best, does not vary delicately. The muscular walls of 
the abdomen have always, in health, that partial contraction 



CHAP. IX.] Clothing, 153 

which is known as muscular tone; and this can be increased 
or lessened with every change- of posture, with all variations 
of exertion, or rest. To place these muscles within some 
rigid support is to weaken them ; but, on the other hand, 
to make demands on them, from childhood upwards, for 
unsupported activity, is to harden and strengthen them, to- 
gether with all the muscles of the body. By means of nerves 
they are in intimate relation with the central nervous system, 
and so, potentially, with all parts of the body ; they are able 
to respond through nerves to varied nervous impulses \ But 
no waist-belts or stays can be thus responsive reflexly ; they 
can only be roughly adjusted from time to time. There is no 
doubt, however, that if tight lacing has been a cause of death 
to some, others — far more numerous — literally strait-laced^ 
have lived to be old. There is no doubt too that thousands 
to whom this term cannot be applied, wear moderately tight 
stays and belts with no clear injury to health. But then there 
are thousands of human beings who hardly know what full 
physiological life is, whose muscles, nerves, glands, and lungs 
are habitually sluggish in action, and it may be that moderate 
constriction of the waist, while not clearly injurious to health, 
has a tendency to slacken the vigour of the abdominal 
muscles. There is abundant evidence that artificial support 
of the abdomen and compression of the waist are of great 
use when special weakness exists; we would urge that this 
support should be kept in reserve for special need, 
and not be looked upon as part of the regular outfit 
of young and healthy women. 

Effects of weight. 

§ 61. Weight, in itself, is to be looked on merely as a 
special encumbrance. Let us suppose that a man of 14 stone 
weight, walks 20 miles. He does a great deal of muscular 
work in that walk, and the most important item is that, step 

^ See above, Introduction. 



154 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

by step, he lifts 14 stone. Now, if he wears clothing which 
weighs 20 lbs. the amount he lifts is 15 st. 6 lbs. at each 
step. If the extra weight is well distributed it is not so 
much noticed as if it were represented by a lump of iron 
carried in the hand, for in this case certain muscles are 
specially and greatly fatigued. Still the encumbrance is there, 
and we all know the rapid fatigue which follows physical 
exertion taken in heavy clothes. And two drawbacks, even 
more serious, attend upon weight in dress. The first is the 
pressure set up by u?ievenly distributed iveight. This belongs 
most perhaps to heavy skirts, which often drag upon the waist 
and hips. The second is volume. Voluminous sleeves, and 
voluminous skirts are both sources of inconvenience, but, 
when the volume of a skirt takes the form of excessive length, 
then (for walking) it is an unmitigated evil. We may say 
that real cleanliness is incompatible with the use 
of long walking skirts. Even when such skirts are lifted 
with care, there are, almost certainly, moments in which they 
fall to the ground, and the practice of allowing them to trail 
along a street or road is absolutely indefensible. We 
have urged elsewhere (§11) that the surface of the earth is 
covered with dust, dust of mingled and often harmful nature. 
Among this dust in every large town are bacteria of most 
varied powers — often disease-producing —and light fragments 
of dried excreta of man and of other animals— healthy and 
unhealthy. The trailing skirt whirls this filthy dust into the 
air, to be breathed not only by the wearer, but by defenceless 
passers-by. It is also carried home clinging to the skirt, 
scattered into the air there by " brushing the dress," and pro- 
bably brought into contact with other clothes. We can hardly 
picture the end of the disasters that may follow. Garments 
which trail in the streets should certainly he counted among 
the carriers of disease. 

§ 62. In the foregoing paragraphs we have spoken chiefly 



CHAP. IX.] Clothing. 155 

of women's dress because the mechanical effects of clothing 
(we might almost say the mechanical defects) are more notice- 
able in the case of women. The scheme of a man's dress 
is, roughly, arrangement in layers, with suspension from the 
shoulders, and the addition of some extra layers on the body. 
And this type of dress commends itself, although the con- 
ception is often better than the execution, and although the 
whole costume is often marred by such a detail as a high, 
stiff collar. It is not suitable, however, for great physical 
exertion, and, as we know, the coat and waistcoat are often 
discarded in such conditions. Another preparation for exertion 
is the replacing of the braces by a belt, and that this should 
be a change for the better is strange, from a woman's point 
of view. We are accustomed to think that suspension of 
clothing from the shoulders is the mechanical ideal ; it may 
be that the difference in judgment is the expression of some 
discomfort proper to braces, and not to garments hung from 
the shoulder, or, on the other hand, that it is the result of real 
unHkeness in the conformation of the waist and hips of men 
and women. 



B. The physiological effects of clothing. 

§ 63. In considering these effects we have to deal equally 
with the dress of women and men. Moreover the material 
of which the clothing is made is of greater importance 
than its arrangement. For the great physiological 
effect of clothing is the checking of loss from the 
surface of the body, and different materials act very 
differently in this direction^ 

Now the loss from the surface of the body is in the first 
place a loss of heat, and in the second place a loss of 
substance. And the substance lost is varied in nature; 

^ See above, § 12. 



156 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

it is, firstly, that complex fluid to which the name of sweat 
or perspiration has been given— water holding in solution 
inorganic and organic salts ^; secondly, ya;//y matter from the 
sebaceous glands ; thirdly, epidermal scales^ that is, fragments 
of skin, rubbed off from the surface. 

Let us examine these processes a little more nearly. 

Loss of heat. We know that the temperature of a healthy 
warm-blooded animal is approximately constant. Heat is 
generated by all metabolism, that is to say by all the chemical 
changes in the living body. Heat is lost by warming food 
and the egesta, by warming the air expired from the lungs, 
but viainly from the skin. The loss from the skin is a loss 
by evaporation, by radiation, and by conduction. Thus there 
are in the body two great antagonistic areas, a warming in- 
ternal area and a cooH7ig skm area., and the blood gains heat 
in the one, loses it in the other, and, by means of nerves, is 
directed now to the one area, now to the other, as the needs 
of the body demand. VVe at once recall illustrations of this. 
If the surrounding air is very cold the blood is withdrawn 
from the skin area (in obedience to nervous impulse) and 
circulates chiefly through the warming internal area (muscles, 
glands, &c.) ; on the other hand, if great muscular exercise 
be taken and the production of heat by metabolism be in- 
creased, the vessels of the skin dilate, blood passes freely 
through the cooling area which they form and so there is 
compensating loss of heat. Now, a relatively bloodless skin 
gives us the sensation of cold ; when the skin is flushed we 
" feel hot " ; it must be remembered then the sensation of 
cold arises when loss of heat is really being lessened, while 
the sensation of warmth arises when the loss of heat from 
the skin is great. 

Loss of substatice. The substance which is lost from the 
skin is waste matter. The epithelium scales are the remnants 
of what were once living cells of the skin ; the fatty matter 
of the sebum has been used as lubricant for the hairs and 



CHAP. IX.] Clothing. 157 

the surface of the body generally ; the sweat carries off waste 
matter which springs from chemical changes in the tissues. 
The amount of sweat excreted varies greatly, but it has been 
estimated as 2 to 20 litres per day. 

We have said that clothing checks loss from the 
skin ; is this action advantageous or disadvantageous ? 

In certain conditions the checking of loss of heat is a great 
gain. The chilHng effect of very cold air upon the skin 
would be dangerous to the naked human being'. However 
great the withdrawal of blood to the great internal heating 
area, it w^ould not be sufficiently warmed in ordinary meta- 
bolism to prevent serious disturbance of health. In the case 
of many warm-blooded animals, fur or feathers protect from 
such disaster; man protects himself in cold climates by 
garments which prevent loss of heat 

{a) by their own thickness, 

{b) by their non-conducting properties, 

{c) by the fact that they enclose strata of fairly warm 
air, which air is more or less stationary. 

When metabolism is greatly increased, the need for clothing 
is less : thus the crew of a racing boat are quite warm when 
they have "rowed a course " in winter, although their clothing 
is scanty. Conversely, when metabolism is more than usually 
quiet, and the temperature surrounding the body is low (as in 
sleigh-driving), abundant, fur-lined garments are not too warm. 
It is almost always disadvantageous to check the loss of sub- 
stance from the skin. The epithelium scales are dead ; others 
are ready to replace them ; the sebum and sweat are, as we 
have said, waste matters. The complete removal of all 
these effete matters is the ideal here; thus, to wear 
clothes is to depart from the ideal. 

1 Certain races, however, go unclothed even in a severe climate. We 
hear of the Patagonians sleeping naked upon the snow. 



158 Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

The physiological effects of clothing, then, are mixed : 
there are, doubtless, climates in which, if these effects only 
were considered, all clothing would be rejected ; in the climate 
of England and with modern habits of life this is impossible, 
but the choice of clothing may be such that the physiological 
gain may be as high as possible, the physiological loss as 
low as possible. Let us recapitulate the conditions which we 
should endeavour to satisfy : 

As to the form of clothing: 

(a) Pressure should be avoided. 

(t?) Weight should be avoided. 

(c) Contact with the earth should be avoided. 

As to the substance of clothing : 

(a) The body should be shielded from direct contact 
with great changes of external temperature ; to this 
end material which conducts heat badly should be 
chosen. 

(b) Clothing should, as far as possible, permit the free 
passage of water and excreted matter from the 
skin, so that evaporation is checked as little as 
may be. 

§ 64. What materials, shaped in what form, will meet these 
needs? Any garment that is loose (but not shapeless), light, 
and hung from the shoulders, is good in form, provided 
that (if for out-door use) it does not touch the ground, 
or hinder locomotion. And this is widely recognized : the 
suspension from the shoulders may be direct, as in the case 
of the comdination, or the Princess dress, or indirect, as when 
a skirt is hung on to its bodice, or trousers upon braces. An 
unconscious acknowledgment of the value of looseness in 
dress is found in the lasting popularity of blouses, and in the 



CHAP. IX.] Clothing. 159 

shape and fit of d^ flannels and "blazers"; and the walking- 
skirt is probably gaining the recognition that has already been 
given to skirts for bicycling, shooting, and hockey. 

We may consider the materials of clothing first as re- 
gards their ivarmth-preserving properties^ and we may first recall 
the fact that these materials are both animal and vegetable in 
origin ; wool, silk, leather, kid, feathers, fur, are derived from 
animals and are nitrogenous ; cotton and linen are made 
from non-nitrogenous vegetable fibre, really from cell-walls. 
The constituent threads of wool are really hairs and have 
rough irregular surfaces ; the threads of silk, of cotton, and 
of linen are variously shaped but of smooth outline ; they 
always lie distinctly, in the fabric which they compose, whereas 
threads of wool may be milled to form a hardly distinguishable 
mass. Of these materials, fur and feathers take the first place 
as warmth-preservers ; next come the various woollens, the 
softer " wools " probably coming before the harder worsteds ; 
then the silks, then cottons (with muslin), and linens (with 
cambrics). Cottons and linens are poor warmth-preservers, 
but their powers may be heightened by suitable treatment. 
Both cotton thread and linen thread are manufactured into 
those fabrics which are now widely known as cellular. The 
manufacturers of these fabrics claim that by the tiny de- 
pressions or pits in which the cloth is woven, a mechanical 
arrangement is made which imprisons a layer of almost 
stationary warm air next the body ; and there can be no 
doubt that, from the point of view of sensation, the cellular 
cloth is much less chilling than plain linen or cotton cloth. 

When we turn to consider the per7neability of materials 
we must place the woollen fabrics first. Doubtless they differ 
among themselves, but they are all more permeable than silk, 
cotton, or linen. Among the cottons and linens, the cellular 
cloths must be counted as exceptionally permeable, as we 
have just seen they are (for cotton and linen respectively) 
exceptionally warm. Fur and feathers (which head the list 



i6o Domestic Economy. [PT. I. 

when warmth is the property considered) are not permeable 
forms of clothing ; for they are mounted on dead skin, and that 
has been subjected to a form of tanning. Now tanning makes 
the skin durable, and pliable, but relatively impervious, so that 
all skins — whether still bearing hair, or made into leather or 
kid — do not allow free escape of water and dissolved sub- 
stances from the body of the wearer. Probably only one 
article of clothing is less permeable than they — namely 
mackintosh (and with this oilskin may be included) — and this 
allows so little escape of skin-excreta that it is highly insanitary 
for anything beyond a narrowly limited use, and its properties 
as a warmth-preserver are rightly disregarded. 

§ 65. It would seem then, that, when the utility of clothing 
is considered, the woollen materials stand easily first in ad- 
vantage. They may be light in weight, they are poor con- 
ductors of heat, they are readily permeable ; thus, while 
retaining heat, they do not check excretion. There is 
however one great drawback attending upon the use 
of wool. It forms fabrics which shrink readily; they must 
always be washed with great care, and they cannot be 
boiled without lasting damage. Therefore woollen garments 
may be a serious source of infection. If they come in contact 
with disease-producing bacteria it is very difficult to free them 
from these. Special methods of disinfection there are, but 
the safe and ready method of sterilizing by boiling cannot be 
used ; and the practice of wearing cotton dresses for nursing 
is hygienically sound. 

Even for the healthy we are not prepared to urge the 
constant use of loose, light, short, woollen garments, varying 
in number with the time of year. Man is a creature of a 
hundred occupations ; and clothing, which might be suicidal 
in one occupation, is fitting or even ornamental in another. 
In fact, in suiting the dress to the occupation, lies 
the secret of really rational clothing. The secret is 



CHAP. IX.] Clothing. i6i 

learnt in part, but as yet only in part. There is hardly an 
Englishman who would climb, or row, or play cricket, except 
in "flannels," or woollen clothes of some sort; but all English- 
men dance in the regulation shirt, and suffer thereby at least 
discomfort. 

It is probable that the majority of men dress more hygi- 
enically than the majority of women. Faults of dress they 
certainly do show ; they cling to hard, impermeable and un- 
picturesque hats, they line woollen garments with cotton, they 
run to excess in collars. But their garments are cleanly and 
not voluminous, and they cover the limbs almost equally with 
the body. The correct " town " dress can be worn without 
hindering quick walking, and, as we have said, when real 
exertion is taken, the town dress is laid aside. 

There is little doubt that the dress of women will be 
less faulty as time goes on. As increased physical activity 
becomes part of the life of girls, the effort to be active in 
unsuitable dress will end in the evolution of suitable garments. 
Indeed the change is in progress ; the very general use of 
woollen combinations • — often even high-necked and long- 
sleeved — the adoption of stocking suspenders instead of garters, 
the substitution of knickerbockers for an underskirt in walking 
and bicycling — these are all specimens of the reforms of the 
last twenty years. And it is this sort of reform w^hich we would 
urge. There can be little harm in allowing a dinner dress to 
trail over well-kept carpets, and it is all a gain that its lines 
should be guided by long petticoats, frilled or shaped ; there 
can be little harm that a man should dine in a somewhat 
chilly and impervious shirt front. Excessive changes of out- 
side temperature are suspended at these times ; the metabolism 
of the skin, too, is not active. But to undertake physical exer- 
tion in these clothes would be a physiological as well as an 
aesthetic sin. 



B. II 



CHAP. X.] 163 



PART II. 

THE PRACTICE AND TEACHING OF DOMESTIC 

ECONOMY. 

CHAPTER X. 

Housewifery: Hygiene in the House, Practical 
Housekeeping and Laundry Work. 

§ 66. The term Housewifery is defined as " skill in the art 
of managing a home," and covers all the duties and knowledge 
expected from one to whom the care of a household is 
delegated. The word embraces a vast field of knowledge, 
an infinity of duties, from the choice and furnishing of the 
dwelling, to the nursing and feeding of infants and sick people. 
Of late years Housewifery has formed a subject of instruction 
in the elementary schools and is now being taught in all 
classes and sections of the community. It threatened to 
become a lost art, and the idea that " housewifely " instincts 
are inherent and blossom naturally in every woman has 
vanished before the stern realities of the daily routine. 

The House, its aspect a?id Construction. 

§ 67. The House comes first under this section. It is 
not possible in many instances to choose a dwelling-place, but 
certain precautions should be observed in every case, as the 
health of the inhabitants largely depends upon the healthiness 
of the house. It is essential that the site should be well 



II 



164 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

chosen, that there should be a good supply of pure air, fresh 
water and plenty of light, and that the drainage should be 
efficient and in good working order. Where the choice of 
a house is possible, the question of rent and 
^^^^ ' distance from the daily work has to be con- 

sidered. A house facing north should be avoided, a south or 
south-westerly aspect is best, as all the living rooms should 
receive plenty of sunshine, the larder is the o?ily place that 
benefits by facing north. For bedrooms an easterly aspect is 
not to be recommended, especially for invalids, who often 
depend greatly on their early morning sleep after a bad night. 
The best soils to live on are gravel, sandstone 
and loose sands ; clay and made soils should be 
avoided. The latter are often excavations, which have been 
filled in with town refuse and sweepings ; if such a site is 
chosen a foundation of concrete should be laid, projecting 
beyond the outer edge of the walls. Ground-water should not 
be nearer the surface than 10 feet and not be subject to 
sudden fluctuations. The next point to consider 
is the construction of the house. Bricks are 
generally used and if well made are good material for the 
purpose ; they are porous and the walls should be at least 
one and a half bricks thick. The foundations of the house 
must be solid and deep enough to give firmness to the 
building. The walls of no room or cellar should be in direct 
contact with the soil ; this can be secured by laying a damp- 
proof course along the full thickness of the wall, which is made 
of glazed tile, slate, asphalte etc. Stone, sandstone and lime- 
stone are also used in constructing houses, they are porous but 
in a less degree. Wood is not much used for external building 
parts, but enters largely into the construction of the fittings. 
Timber for this purpose should be close, straight-grained and 
well seasoned. For the roof tiles or slates are best, nailed on 
a good framework, strong enough to bear the tiles and a 
certain quantity of snow. The gutters should be made of lead, 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 165 

and where they join well fixed into the brickwork. The 
eaves should always project beyond the walls and be provided 
with a good gutter discharging into rain pipes. These again 
should discharge into properly ventilated rain-water tanks or 
over a drain covered by a grating. They should never be 
directly connected with the drains or sewer, neither should the 
heads come beneath a bedroom window. If there are trees 
near the house, it is necessary in autumn to see that the 
gutters do not get choked up, and after a heavy fall of snow the 
roof should be cleared, this is the duty of the tenant. 

Floors are best made of some impervious material such as 
wood, stone or tiles, which can be washed. The 

' ' Floors. 

two latter are suitable for halls, passages or 

sculleries, but are too cold for living rooms, besides which 

they do not " give " in the least and are tiring to stand on. 

Windows and doors should fit well, and the former should 
open freely top and bottom and every room 
should be provided with a fireplace and a ^^^ ^^ol7%. 
chimney, as they form the best means of escape 
of foul air. 

Walls may be panelled, painted, distempered, papered or 
limewashed, but in all cases the surface should 
be smooth, non-porous, and the material used coverings, 
must not give off any poison such as arsenic. 
Washing papers or any that have been varnished are suitable 
for bathrooms and lavatories. In putting on new papers, the 
■ old one should be scraped off first. If these are left on they 
are liable to rot and ferment. 

Ventilation. 

§ 68. Ventilation, as will be seen in §§ 12 — 16, is some- 
thing more than providing for change of air in a house. The 
windows of a crowded, overheated room may be thrown open 
on a cold windy night and change of air will thus be procured, 
but discomfort to the occupants will result. 



1 66 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

To sustain healthy life, air must be pure and uncontami- 
nated ; it can only be sustained when atmospheric air can 
be freely breathed. Evidence is constantly forthcoming to 
prove that if air be greatly contaminated death results from 
breathing it, and even if not sufficient to cause death, it will 
impair the respiratory organs or lower the general health of 
the body. 

Movement, sunlight, water, heat and cold are all most 
necessary for keeping air pure and healthy. The purification 
of air in buildings is best secured by efficient ventilation. To 
secure this two things are primarily essential, (i) an air inlet, 
(2) an air outlet. Constant care must be exercised in order 
that air may not be contaminated either just before or while 
entering the building, or after having entered. Openings too 
must be provided for its exit and entrance with means for 
regulating one or both. 

The three methods in general use are : 

1. The Plenum System. 

2. The Exhaust System. 

3. The Natural System. 

Mechanical means such as the first two are not much used 
for ordinary dweUings, but should be employed for buildings 
in which many people congregate, as only by mechanical 
means can constant satisfactory ventilation be obtained. In 
buildings such as schools where the Plenum System is adopted 
(see illustration), fans are considered the most economical and 
satisfactory. A careful consideration of the diagram will show 
the method recently adopted for ventilating a large school. 
The fresh air is admitted at A^ passed over coke filters B 
before being heated and propelled through the building by 
means of the rotary air propeller, a fan at D. Only two 
rooms are shown, but the same principle is applied to all. 
In ordinary dwelling-houses it is essential that the ventilating 
appliances should be simple in construction and easily regu- 



CHAP. X.] 



Housewifery. 



167 




<fl: 



1 68 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

lated, and that all the flues and ducts should be periodically 
cleaned. The natural means of ventilation are based on the 
forces which nature supplies (see Chapter iv.). When the 
temperature is raised air expands, the result being that colder 
air falls by the power of gravitation and in so doing causes 
the lighter air to ascend. It is upon the variable movements 
of the outer atmosphere that the ventilation within the house 
is based. The forces they exercise may be employed either 
for propulsion, or for extraction, or both. In addition, when 
houses are warmed, forces are developed within which may 
or may not assist the change of air. In England the open 
fireplace is the great feature in ventilating the house. The 
amount of ventilation is secured not only by the presence of 
the fire, but because of the necessity of an opening to the 
outer air. On no account therefore should the register be 
closed when there is no fire in the grate, nor should anything 
be stuffed up the flue, as the latter should be regarded as 
a most important outlet for air. The regulation of the amount 
of the change of air in an apartment is better effected at the 
inlet than the outlet, consequently all inlets should be capable 
of easy regulation ; in the case of a fireplace this is effected 
by means of the register. Ordinary dwellings in England are 
frequently warmer than the outer atmosphere, consequently, 
unless each room receives a separate and adequate supply of 
air from the exterior there is risk of down-draught in some 
flues, particularly if others are more lofty. In order to obviate 
" smoky chimneys " it is necessary to have air inlets. As 
change of air is essential to ventilation, there must be move- 
ment of air, but when the movement is too rapid, draughts 
ensue. 

The size, nature, and position of inlets and outlets must 
be carefully considered. The principal outlet is generally, as 
has been pointed out, the fireplace flue, and if the inlet is 
placed on the same side of the room as the outlet the risk 
of setting up draughts is reduced to a minimum, unless the 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 169 

incoming air is at a very low temperature. Special inlets 
other than doors and windows should be situate at about 
two-thirds the height of the room and be so shaped as to 
give the incoming air an upward tendency. In order to decide 
upon the position of a special air inlet it is important to ascer- 
tain the direction of the air-current in the room. This may be 
done by employing volatile essences such as oil of peppermint 
or by using smoke, but the most simple method is to hold 
a lighted taper which will be useful as a test by observing the 
deflection of the flame. Tolmi tubes have been largely used 
for air inlets, but they are usually fixed so as to cause much 
discomfort and are consequently closed up. Another inlet is 
known as the Louvre regulator, and when placed on the same 
side of the room as the fireplace is by far the best air inlet. 
As a rule inlets are too small, and when the extract power 
in the outlet-flue is considerable, air enters with too great 
velocity and causes draughts. The Sheringhani air inlet ne- 
cessitates a hole through an outer wall with a grating on the 
outside, and an inner frame provided with a hinged flap 
weighted so that when a weight attached to a cord is raised 
the flap may be opened at will. The most simple arrange- 
ment and one which may be used by all is the fixing of a 
board or deep bottom rail to an ordinary double-hung sash 
which permits of the window being opened to allow air to 
enter at the meeting rails. The object of all these contrivances 
is to admit air so as to cause diffusion throughout the apart- 
ment and to avoid a direct current or draught. 

Heating and Lighting. 

§ 69. The chief requirements of a good system of warming 
are the following : 

1. The apparatus should produce and keep up an equable 
warmth all over the building or at least over every part of a 
given apartment. 

2. It should not vitiate the air in any way. 



I/O Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

3. It should not lessen the humidity of the air. 

4. It should not require skilled attention or be likely to 
explode or cause damage to property. 

5. The apparatus should be of such a nature as to pro- 
mote ventilation. 

Modern houses of any size are heated either by hot water 
or by hot air, and in taking a house it is well to 

Heating. ... . . 

ascertam that the heatmg apparatus is m good 
working order. In heating by hot water, the pipes should be 
protected from frost and the flues and boiler kept clean : hard 
water furs the inside and causes the pipes to choke. The 
chief objection to the use of air as a means of warming a room 
or house is the fact that heated air is often unpleasantly dry. 
Open fireplaces heat a room very unequally, but are cheerful 
and ensure ventilation. They should be constructed with as 
much firebrick as possible to retain the heat, and the space 
beneath the fire should be closed in front by a close-fitting 
iron shield or " economizer," this secures as complete combus- 
tion as possible of the fuel at the bottom of the fire by the 
exclusion of cold air. 

Artificial lighting may be supplied by gas, lamps or candles, 

all of which require a considerable amount of 

Lighting. , . . , . i-^ -, ^ 

oxygen and vitiate the air. Coal gas when 
burned produces carbonic acid gas, and each cubic foot in 
burning consumes 8 cubic feet of air in one hour. It is liable 
to explode on the approach of a light. When there is an 
escape of gas, which may be readily detected by the smell, all 
the doors and windows should be opened before taking a light 
to find out the cause. In the absence of a plumber the leak 
may be stopped temporarily with soap, but the pipe should be 
repaired as soon as possible. Incandescent gaslight is eco- 
nomical in its consumption of gas and sound from a hygienic 
standpoint; it gives a very white light and is dazzling in its 
illuminating power. Electric light is perfect hygienically, but 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 171 

is not yet within the reach of many private individuals. Where 
electric light is being introduced into a town it is possible to 
have it laid on at a comparatively low cost. Lamps are in 
general use when gas is not obtainable. Formerly colza oil 
was largely used but it is expensive and requires a special lamp, 
and has been almost entirely replaced by the use of the mineral 
oils, paraffin and petroleum. These mineral oils should be of 
the best quality ; cheap oils have a low flash point and are 
very dangerous. In America the flash point is 100° Fahrenheit 
while in England 75° Fahrenheit is the recognized standpoint, 
hence the many accidents that occur. The London County 
Council have recognized this danger and have issued printed 
directions for the construction and management of lamps, a 
copy of which should be in every household. 

Suggestions for the safe construction and proper 

MANAGEMENT OF LaMPS. 

Construction. 

1. The oil reservoir should be of strong metal properly 
folded and soldered at the joint, and should not be of china, 
glass or other fragile material. 

2. There should be no opening between the reservoir and 
the burner, other than through the tube which holds the wick ; 
and this tube should be extended to within \ inch of the 
bottom of the reservoir and should have no opening into the 
reservoir except at its base. 

3. The burner should be securely attached to the reservoir, 
preferably by means of a strong and well-made screw attach- 
ment. 

4. There should be no openings through which the oil 
could flow from the reservoir should the lamp be upset. 

5. Every table lamp should have a broad and heavy base, 
to which the reservoir should be strongly attached. 



1/2 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

The Use of Lamps. 

Suggestions for securing Safety in the use of Lamps. 

Petroleum oil (or parafifin) such as is commonly used in lamps becomes 
dangerous from fire and explosion when it is heated above its flashing point. 

The flashing point of ordinary petroleum oil is a little above 73° Fahr. ; 
and while being burnt in lamps such oil is frequently heated above this 
temperature, and many fatal and other accidents are caused. 

Oil in the reservoirs of lamps is rarely heated above 100° Fahr., and the 
most important safeguard against accident is therefore never to burn oil 
which has a flashing point of less than 100° Fahr. 

The flashing point is the temperature at which oil flashes when tested 
in the Abel testing apparatus. 

Oil of over 100° Fahr. flashing point should be sold by every oilman or 
dealer in lamps as cheaply as low-flash oil. 

Lamps should be strongly made, and should be kept thoroughly clean. 
Ln choosing a lamp., see — 

That the reservoir is thick and strong, and is not made of thin glass 

or china. 
That the burner is strong, and is securely connected to the reservoir 

by screwing into the collar. 
That the lamp has a broad and heavy base. 

Llie wick should be soft, and not tightly plaited, and should quite fill 
the wick tube without having to be squeezed into it. Wicks should be 
frequently renewed, and immediately before being put into lamps should be 
dried at a fire. 

In managing a lamp, take care — 

That the reservoir \i filled with oil before the lamp is lit. 

That the burner is kept thoroughly clean, that all oil is wiped oft, 

and all charred wick and dirt carefully removed before lighting. 
That when first lit the wick is partially turned down, and then 

gradually raised. 
That the wick while alight is not left tinned down, as there is then 

greater liability to explosion when low-flash oil is used. 




iVyiT£/f MAIN 



Sanitary Water Supply. 



To face page 173. 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 173 

That lamps which have no extinguishing apparatus are put out as 
follows — The wick should be turned down until there is only a 
small flickering flame, and a flat piece of metal should then be 
placed on the top of the chimney, so as to entirely close it. 

That cans or bottles used for oil are free from water and dirt and 
are kept closed. 

On 710 account should a lamp be rc-filled while it is alight. 

By kind permission of the London County Council. 



Drainage a?id Water Supply. 

§ 70. All refuse matter should be removed as speedily as 
possible from the neighbourhood of dwellings, 
and the problem of how to dispose of sewage is 
one of the most pressing of the day. Sewers are conduits to 
carry away waste water and waste products to be disposed of in 
the manner most suitable and possible for the district. House- 
pipes are the channels or conduits inside the house, and are 
either soil-pipes connected with the water-closets or si?ik-pipes 
for carrying away waste water. House-pipes lead into drain- 
pipes. Pipes leading from any water-closet in the upper part 
of the house should be outside the wall of the house ; while 
the pipe from the water-closet should be obliquely connected 
with the soil-pipe and have air-tight joints. To secure ventila- 
tion the soil-pipe should be carried well above the roof, not 
ending near any window. Where the house-pipe joins the 
drain, it should be disconnected by a good water-trap and 
ventilation secured by connection with the open air. Waste- 
pipes discharging water from sinks, lavatories, baths etc. should 
not connect directly with any drain, but must discharge into the 
open air over a grating covering a good water-trap. The best 
and safest trap is the syphon, consisting of a curved tube, the 
curves being full of clean cold water which should stand three- 
quarters of an inch above the top of the curve. 



174 Domestic Economy. [PT. 11. 

This trap is also known as the U-bend from its shape ; a 
screw-cap is placed in the bend to allow of the pipe being 
readily cleaned with a penny cane or a chain. 

The best modern kinds of water-closet are the wash-out 

and the wash-down closets. Both are made out 
cioseTs^^" ^^ glazed earthenware and present a minimum 

amount of surface between the basin and the 
trap. The quantity of flushing water available should be at 
least three gallons. This water should be supplied from its 
own cistern and not from a cistern or pipe which supplies 
water for other household purposes. The door of the lavatory 
should always be shut and the window kept open. 

The best place for the bathroom is at the side of the house, 

so that the waste water can be carried away 

outside. The pipes should be trapped inside 
and cut off outside and have no direct communication with the 
drains. 

In taking a house it is best to have the drains thoroughly 

examined by a competent person. The test 
drains^^^ ^^^ generally used is that known as the "smoke 

test." A simple method, which can be carried 
out by everyone, is to make a mixture of one ounce of oil of 
peppermint and a few gallons of hot water and put it down the 
pipe at the highest part. As the oil is very volatile, there is no 
difficulty in tracing the smell and thus detecting a leak in the 
pipe ; the tracing of the smell should not be entrusted to the 
person who pours the peppermint and water down the drain as 
the odour is pungent and lingering and may be misleading. 
House refuse is usually stored up on the premises until 

removed at certain intervals by the scavenger's 
Refuse^ cart. When this is done it is necessary to see 

that the receptacle is made of some non-porous 
material, such as galvanized iron with a closely fitting lid. It 
is far better and safer to store nothing but dust and ashes and 
to burn all vegetable and animal refuse. This may be done 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 175 

by rolling up such things as food scraps, tea-leaves, etc. in 
paper, drying them on the stove or under the grate and then 
putting them on the fire when it is bright and fierce ; there will 
be no smell, and if the dampers are pulled out the whole mass 
will soon disappear. Another method is to bury such refuse, 
but this is impossible except in the country. 

A good supply of water is a necessity and health depends 
upon the quantity and quality of the supply. 
Water is wanted for drinking and cooking suppiy'^ 
purposes, for personal ablutions, for washing, 
for flushing drains and sewers ; these amounts are generally 
included under domestic supplies, at least 20 gallons per day 
per head is required. In addition streets have to be watered, 
horses and cattle supplied, etc. In large towns the arrange- 
ments for the water supply are generally in the hands of a 
water company and it is often brought from long distances, as 
for instance Manchester, which gets its water from Lake 
Thirlamere, a distance of 95 miles. The quality of the water 
is very important. It should be clear, transparent and colour- 
less, it should have no taste or smell and give no deposit on 
standing. Very clear sparkling water may be dangerous, 
because it contains organic impurities which will produce 
cholera and typhoid fever. Water is roughly divided into 
hard and soft water. The hardness is due to the presence 
in the water of the salts of lime and magnesia ; rain water is 
the only natural soft water and is best for washing purposes. 
What is known as temporary hardness can be removed by 
boiling or by the addition of an alkali, but permanently hard 
water is only affected by distillation. Drinking water if pure is 
best untouched, but unless absolutely satisfied on this point it 
is better to boil it; from 10 to 20 minutes will be an absolute 
protection even if the water be not pure to start with. As 
boiled water has a flat insipid taste, it can be aerated by 
pouring it from one jug to another, in fresh air if possible. 

Filtration is often resorted to, but it does not take the 



176 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

place of boiling. Filters must be kept scrupulously clean and 
the water should not be allowed to remain stagnant in them. 

A cistern for storing water temporarily is needed where the 
water supply is intermittent, that is, only turned on at certain 
hours ; the constant supply is far more healthy and convenient. 
Cisterns should be cleaned out every few months and be 
supplied with a tightly-fitting lid, and those used for drinking 
water should have no communication with a sanitary conveni- 
ence. Wherever possible, rain water should be collected and 
stored for use. As it has a solvent action on lead, neither the 
cistern nor the pipes should be made of that substance. 



Kitchen^ Larder^ and Store Room. 

§ 71. When all these points have been carefully looked 
into, the next important part of the house to 
be considered is the kitchen, for on it and the 
construction of the range depend much of the comfort of the 
house. Most kitchens are fitted with a fixed range, that is, a 
range built into the wall with a self-filling boiler at the back 
which supplies the house with hot water. The latter should be 
easy of access, protected from frost and have a constant supply 
of water. The range should be provided with two ovens, one 
well ventilated for roasting purposes ; the grate should be fitted 
with a patent lifter by means of which the fireplace is made 
larger or smaller according to the purpose for which the fire 
is required. The backs of the modern ranges are usually made 
of tiles, which are easily cleaned and give a fresh, clean 
appearance to the stove. Much depends on the setting of a 
range, and on taking a house it is well to give the one provided 
a trial before settling down. It is no longer necessary to have 
a range " built in," they can be obtained with hot water boilers 
and can be placed in an ordinary fireplace or against a wall. 
The cost of these ranges varies from ;£^2o upwards. 



Kitchen. 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 177 

An American or portable range is cheap and useful, and 
may be placed in a back kitchen for use during the summer 
months or in any house where a large supply of hot water is 
not required. Many are provided with a side boiler, but this 
limits the oven room, which should not be less than 16 x 14 
inches. The cost is from £^2. \os. upwards. 

Gas-stoves are now used by rich and poor, the introduction 
of the penny in the slot system enabling the latter to use these 
stoves economically and with great advantage. They should 
not be placed unprotected on a wooden floor, but should stand 
on a sheet of iron or on a slab of slate. They should also be 
well ventilated to carry off the noxious fumes of gas, i point 
very often overlooked. 

The advantages of gas-stoves in cooking are very obvious ; 
there is no dirt or dust and an even, easily regulated tempera- 
ture can be maintained. 

Oil-stoves are much used in all parts of the country, 
especially during the summer months. The cost of buying 
and heating is very little, a small stove costing about 22s. ; they 
are suitable for baking, boiling and stewing. The lamps must 
be kept thoroughly clean and well trimmed and the flues 
on each side of the ovens kept free from soot ; the oil used 
should be of the best (see lamps) and each lamp fitted with a 
patent extinguisher. 

In cleaning ranges of all kinds, the fireirons, fender, etc. 
must first be removed and then the contents of the grate 
thoroughly sifted, the cinders, which are porous, should be laid 
aside for lighting the fire, while the ashes are carried out to 
the dustbin. The flues should then be thoroughly brushed 
out by means of a long-handled flexible brush, known as 
the flue brush ; access to them is gained through the openings 
in various parts of the range, known as soot doors. This 
cleaning of the flues is a very important point and a regular 
day once a week should be set aside for the duty. Com- 
plaints of ovens not heating, of the want of hot water, may 

B. 12 



1/8 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

all be traced to the neglect of cleanliness. If grease be spilt 
in the ovens or on the range, the shelves, etc. should be 
washed with hot water and soda before the blackleading is 
proceeded with. Mix the black lead or enamelHne with a 
little water or turpentine and apply lightly with a brush, rub 
off with another and polish with a third. Nickel fittings should 
be rubbed bright with a leather, steel and brass fittings cleaned 
with powdered bathbrick. In cleaning a gas-stove, the openings 
through which the gas jets come must be carefully cleared, a 
long fine pin is useful, as the openings often get choked with 
grease or blacklead and refuse to burn properly. In laying 
the fire it should be borne in mind that there can be no fire 
without plenty of air. Put first a few pieces of cinder, then 
some lightly crumpled paper, sticks laid crosswise, and finally 
some pieces of coal. 

The next point of importance after the kitchen range is the 
position of the sink ; ill-health may often be traced to want 
of attention to this part of the establishment. It should be 
placed against an outside wall and be constructed of hard 
glazed earthenware, slightly tilted towards the opening of the 
pipe to allow the water to run off freely. The opening should 
be protected by a piece of perforated zinc or copper to prevent 
bits from going through and choking the pipes ; a sink-basket 
is an additional protection and collects the pieces which may 
afterwards be dried and burnt. The pipe should have a bend 
in it, U-shaped, with a screw-cap at the bottom of the bend 
which may be easily removed for cleaning purposes : a penny 
cane or a chain may be used to remove any obstruction. The 
pipe itself should penetrate the outer wall and discharge into 
the open air over a grating covering a good water trap ; it 
should not be made to open under the grating as sewer gas 
may be sucked up through the pipe by the higher temperature 
of the air inside the house. Sinks should be well scrubbed 
from time to time with plenty of hot water and soda, this will 
help to remove the grease which congeals and clings to the 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 179 

inside surface of the pipe. At least once a week a pailful of 
disinfectant should be poured down to keep everything sweet 
and clean ; Condy's fluid or permanganate of potash may be 
used mixed with water, as it is non-poisonous and removes 
offensive smells ; it should be understood that Condy's fluid is 
a deodorizer, but does not destroy micro-organisms. Quantities 
of cold water should be poured down the sink drain the last 
thing ; this purifies and freshens the pipes and stands in the U- 
bend of the Open Trap so that any sewer gas arising from the 
drain would be less likely to pass through into the scullery or 
kitchen. The use of sand in cleaning sinks or kitchen utensils 
is not to be advocated as it is apt to choke the pipe ; cabbage- 
water should be emptied away out of doors, as it causes a foul 
penetrating smell in the house. The coloured diagram on 
page 173 should be carefully studied in illustration of the above 
instructions. 

Next to the consideration of the kitchen-range, the drains, 
and the position of the sink, comes the question 
of the larder. As already stated, it should face store-Room. 
north, but, besides being cool, it is also neces- 
sary that it should be dry and well-ventilated. A current 
of air should move through it by means of two windows or 
by a window and ventilating bricks. The larder should be 
light, the walls and ceiling whitewashed at frequent intervals 
and everything kept sweet and clean ; the shelves therefore are 
best made of slate or earthenware instead of wood. No closet, 
ashpit or drain ventilator should be anywhere near, as all food, 
especially milk, is easily contaminated. 

The larder should be used for the purpose of storing food 
only, and all food should be kept covered with muslin to keep 
off dust, flies, and possible mice. The ceiling should be 
furnished with hooks for hanging meat and game ; bacon also 
should be hung in a dry place well away from the walls, and 
hams tied in bags for protection from flies. Lard done up in 
skins may be suspended from nails. Apples and pears may be 

12 — 2 



i8o Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

stored on the floor, placed so that they do not touch each other 
and carefully looked over from time to time ; bunches of grapes 
may be strung on a string, the stalks may be put in bottles of 
water which may be hung with string tied round the necks. 
Root vegetables, such as potatoes, artichokes, carrots, should 
be stored in a dark, dry place, onions should be plaited in 
strings and suspended from a hook, lemons may be hung in 
nets from a nail in the ceiling so that they may be surrounded 
by air on all sides. Herbs should be dried, rubbed fine, and 
kept in tightly corked bottles. In some houses the larder and 
store-room serve one and the same purpose, but a larder should 
be used for the food in use only, while dry goods, such as rice, 
sugar, biscuits, soap, matches, etc., which are cheaper bought 
in large quantities, are kept in the store-room. Here also 
should be found jams, jellies, pickles, and tinned foods ; in the 
country a store-room is a necessity, as supplies of all kinds are 
not always obtainable at a moment's notice and the house- 
keeper will find it useful to keep a stock of provisions in case 
of unexpected guests and any other emergency. Where stores 
are bought in large quantities a special day should be set apart 
for giving them out and each servant be instructed to bring a 
list of things required in her special department during the 
week. Every article should be kept in tins or jars, each 
distinctly labelled and replenished as the contents get low. 

The cost of furnishing the kitchen is very considerable, and 
must depend a great deal on the income of those about to live 
in the house and the amount of cooking required. 

A good furnishing ironmonger and draper will supply 
priced lists of kitchen requisites suitable for an average house- 
hold; it is false economy to buy cheap utensils, as they quickly 
wear out ; this is especially the case with saucepans, good 
ones can be re-tinned at a small cost and will last a long time. 
If a kitchen is to be used as a servant's hall as well, it is 
advisable to have a gas or oil stove in the back kitchen for use 
during the summer months. It should also be furnished com- 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. i8i 

fortably with 2 or 3 tables, chairs, plate-rack and dresser, 
fender, fireirons and blinds, and the floor should be covered 
with linoleum and a cover chosen for the table. 



The Sick- Room and its appliances : medical and surgical'. 

§ 72. The following section deals \vith some of the emer- 
gencies that may present themselves in the home ; they do not 
aim in any way at being a complete manual on sick nursing, 
but are merely suggestions what to do in the absence of the 
medical man. 

Among the many duties that fall to the lot of the house- 
wife comes the very important one of nursing 
and tending the sick and the preparation of ^oom. "" 
their food and that of infants. A little know- 
ledge on the part of the head of the house will often detect 
the first symptoms and ward off a serious illness by sending 
for the doctor in time and being able to apply the remedies 
prescribed at an early stage of the disease. This is especially 
important with childish ailments, which develop with alarming 
rapidity. In the case of illness in a house, the choice and 
preparation of the room must be considered. In cases of 
accident, an apartment on the ground-floor should be chosen, 
light, airy, and, as in all cases of illness, free from superfluous 
furniture. Except perhaps in the height of summer a fire 
should be lighted, as the patient frequently suffers from collapse 
and will require warmth to restore him. When an infectious 
disease declares itself a top room should be chosen, as much 
isolated as possible. A sheet dipped in carbolic acid and 
water (i in 40) may be hung in front of the door and the room 

1 Teachers are advised to make themselves acquainted with the more 
detailed applications to School life of the rules laid down in this section 
which will be found in Hope and Browne : The Teachers' Manual of 
School Hygiene, Cambridge, iqoi. 



1 82 Domestic Economy. [PT. ii. 

cleaned by wiping over with a cloth wrung out in hot water to 
which some Condy's Fluid (permanganate of potash) has been 
added or some carbolic acid. The latter is a poison and 
should be kept carefully apart from medicines. Permanganate 
of potash is a deodorizer and not a disinfectant, but it is 
harmless. Next to the preparation of the room comes the bed. 
Never attempt, unless it is absolutely unavoidable, to nurse any 
one in illness on a double or on a feather bed. An iron bed- 
stead 6 ft. by 3J with spring and hair mattresses is the most 
comfortable for both patient and nurse ; the bedding should be 
light and warm ; in cases of rheumatism sheets are not used. 
In most illnesses a draw sheet is put on to keep the under sheet 
clean. It is folded lengthwise to reach from the shoulder to 
the knees and is partly rolled up. Both ends are tucked 
tightly under the mattress, sometimes secured by safety pins, 
as any wrinkles in the sheet or blanket will cause bed sores ; 
when soiled or a fresh cool surface is required, part may be 
unrolled and drawn through without disturbing the patient. 
In some cases a sheet of mackintosh may be placed under the 
draw-sheet. Sheets are changed in two ways. Should the 
patient be quite helpless, as in surgical cases, the under sheet 
is removed by rolling from the head to the feet ; one person on 
each side of the bed. The soiled sheet is loosened and rolled, 
the clean one arranged at the top of the bed, the rest of it 
being rolled and placed parallel with the soiled sheet. The 
two sheets are then worked downwards, the soiled one rolled 
up and removed, the clean one unrolled and tucked in at the 
end of the bed. In medical cases and when the patient may 
be moved, the sheets are changed from the side. The sick 
person is turned on to one side, the dirty sheet loosened and 
rolled up close to the patient's back, while the clean sheet is 
loosely rolled parallel with the roll of the soiled one. After 
tucking in the clean sheet gently turn the patient over so that 
he crosses the rolls ; the soiled sheet may then be removed and 
the clean one arranged and tucked in. During the changing 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 183 

of the sheets the patient must be kept covered up. Changing 
the top sheet is a comparatively easy matter. The clean 
upper sheet with a blanket is laid on the soiled sheet and 
blanket, which have been previously loosened. One person 
holds the clean clothes in place, the patient can do this if 
well enough, while the other removes the soiled ones from 
beneath, the rest of the coverings are then replaced. All 
sheets and linen should be well-aired and warmed. The 
nurse should wash the patient's hands and face twice a day 
with warm water and a complete washing should take place at 
least o?ice a week. It is necessary to uncover only one part at 
a time, to have everything in readiness before beginning and to 
arrange a blanket or flannel so that the bedclothes and night- 
dress may be kept dry ; in fever cases patients require frequent 
sponging. In changing body linen, the fresh garments should 
first be aired and warmed. In cases of injured limbs the 
nightdress should be removed from the sound side first ; when 
dressing the reverse occurs, put the injured arm into the sleeve 
first. Bed sores are caused by wrinkles in the bedclothes, un- 
cleanliness, moisture, crumbs, or from long lying on one part of 
the body. Every precaution should be taken to prevent their 
appearance by rubbing the parts likely to be affected mth 
spirit of some kind, Eau de Cologne, methylated spirits, 
whisky, etc. Impromptu cradles for keeping the bedclothes 
off an injured limb may be made with a band-box or a three- 
legged stool ; bed-rests by turning a chair upside down so that 
the back forms a slant, this can be made comfortable with 
pillows ; a pulley made of knitted cotton or a roller towel can 
be fastened to the foot of the bed by which the patient can 
raise himself. The temperature of a sick room must be studied 
and a thermometer should be hung in a convenient part of the 
room, not too near the fire or in a draught. The ordinary 
temperature is 60° Fahrenheit, and it should be remembered 
that the vitality of a patient is at its lowest from 2 a.m. until 
sunrise, so that care must be taken not to let the fire out 



184 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

during the night. As soon as a case of illness occurs in a 
house the doctor should be sent for, but in the meantime the 
one in charge of the sick person should carefully jot down on 
paper any symptoms that may help the doctor to diagnose the 
case on arrival ; a time-table should be kept of the hours 
at which food or medicine have been administered and of the 
length and depth of sleep. 

§ 73. A few simple remedies may be stored for use in an 
emergency, especially in a house where there are children : 
linseed meal for poultices, castor oil, Kutnow's powder, boracic 
ointment, ipecacuanha, oil-silk, cotton-wool, sal volatile, a 
feeding cup, clinical and bath thermometers, a bronchitis 
kettle, a medicine glass and a few bandages. In sending for 
the doctor it is advisable to state whether it is an accident or 
not, that he may come with the necessary appliances and much 
valuable time be saved. 

In the case of slight accidents, first aid may be rendered at 
home. Should the clothes catch fire the person 
Scald "^ ^" should be wrapped up in a thick woollen gar- 
ment or even a door mat, and be rolled on the 
floor until the flames are extinguished. In dressing a burn or 
scald great care must be taken in removing the clothes for fear 
the skin should be torn or broken. Scissors should be used, 
and if any part adheres, it may be sponged away with warm 
water. In dressing these injuries it is necessary to exclude the 
air ; this may be done by covering the wounds with flour, and 
with bandages or strips of old linen. The burn or scald may 
be further enveloped in cotton-wool. Equal parts of lime 
water and oil (linseed or olive oil) shaken up together form an 
excellent mixture for application. Strips of linen should be 
dipped in the mixture and then laid on one by one, in order 
that as little of the surface as possible may be exposed at once. 
Pain may be relieved by the application of a paste made of 
bicarbonate of soda and water spread over the burn and 
covered with cotton-wool. 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 185 

A foreign body in the ear demands specially careful 
treatment. If turning the head on one side and 
tapping the other ear is not successful, it is best the^an^""^^ ^" 
to let the patient see a doctor at once. If an 
insect has got in, a little warm oil may be poured in and the 
head turned on one side. If, on the contrary, the foreign body 
should be a pea or bean no liquid should be put in, or the pea 
or bean will swell. In trying to remove anything 
from the eye hold down the lower lid with the the"eye'.^"" '" 
fore-finger of the left hand and remove the 
foreign substance with a tightly folded piece of paper or a 
soft camel's hair brush. Should lime have got in, bathe the 
eye with vinegar and water and afterwards with warm water. 

Bruises may be rubbed over with fresh butter or olive oil, 
cuts should be washed in warm water to remove 
any dirt or glass and bound up. If the bleeding ^u^s"'^^^ ^"^^ 
continue cold water will help to reduce it. 

Unconsciousness may be due to various causes, it is not 
always easy even for a medical man to diagnose 
the case at once. In the meantime the patient ^^^°^^^^°^^~ 
should be kept quiet in a recumbent position, all 
tight clothing removed, a hot bottle may be put to the feet and 
cold applications to the head. It is better to give no stimulant 
unless ordered by the doctor. In cases of 
poison it is often necessary to act at once, and 
for this reason it is well to know something of the various kinds 
of poisons and how to treat them. They may be divided into 
two classes, cases in which an emetic must not be given, and 
those in which one should be given at once: 

I. An emetic should not be given in cases of poisoning 
by corrosives, substances which destroy life by corroding the 
tissues. They include {a) acids, such as carbolic acid, oxalic 
acid, etc., {b) alkalies, such as soda, lime, caustic potash. 
The antidote depends on the nature of the poison. If an acid 
has been taken give an alkali, such as a tablespoonful of 



1 86 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

magnesia, chalk, plaster from the walls, etc., in a tumbler of 
water; if the poison is from an alkali the antidote will be 
a weak acid, such as a tablespoonful of vinegar or lemon juice in 
half a glass of water. After that give barley-water, olive oil or 
white of egg. 

Poisons which i-equire an emetic are various and only a few 
can be mentioned. 

{a) Na?rotics, such as laudanum, chlorodyne, morphia, 
&c. The patient under these circumstances must be kept 
awake, he should be given strong coffee and be made to 
walk about. Douches of cold water will help to overcome 
the deadly drowsiness. A quickly made emetic is a tumbler 
of warm water in which a tablespoon of mustard or salt has 
been mixed. 

{b) Excitants. These poisons are caused by deadly night- 
shade, prussic acid, some kinds of fungi, etc. After giving the 
emetic a douche of cold water should be administered. The 
symptoms are excitement and deHrium. 

{c) 17'ritants. These cause pain at the pit of the 
stomach, vomiting and great prostration, and result from taking 
arsenic, lead, mercury, phosphorus, laburnum seeds, foxglove, 
aconite, putrid meat, etc. If the patient has vomited freely 
there is no need to give an emetic, but barley-water, white of 
egg in water or gruel should be administered and stimulants 
may be ordered. Oil may be given in most cases of poisoning 
except when the trouble is caused by taking phosphorus. The 
doctor should always be sent for at once, and, if possible, the 
nature of the poison taken described. A clue may be obtained 
by taking a rapid survey of the patient's surroundings and cir- 
cumstances and noting any bottles or papers which may help 
in the identification of the poison. 

Fever cases may be divided into various stages, i. In- 
cubation, the period that elapses between taking 

Infection. ,.^. ^,, ,.^, ,. ^° 

the mfection and developmg the disease. 2. In- 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 187 

vasion, the time of the actual attack when the temperature of the 
patient rises ; common symptoms are shivering fits known as 
rigors or severe headache. 3. Eruption, the rash then appears; 
its absence is often a dangerous symptom. 4. Defervescence, 
when a return to the normal temperature sets in, if the patient 
is to recover. 5. Convalescence is the period that lasts until 
the usual state of health is re-established. All cases of in- 
fectious disease must be strictly isolated ; different fevers are 
infectious in various ways, so that precautions must be taken 
from the very outset. Scarlet fever is catching from the breath 
and through scales from the skin, typhoid through the excreta, 
measles through exhalations, diphtheria through a deposit on 
the throat and through the breath. 

Disinfectants destroy micro-organisms, while a deodorizer 
merely prevents an unpleasant smell, but does not take away 
the risk of infection. 

The best disinfectant to use is carbolic acid, but it is a 
dangerous poison and should be kept locked up and never 
placed within the reach of children or near medicine or food. 
Chloride of lime may also be used. After an infectious illness 
the patient should be bathed, dressed in clean clothes and 
removed from the room, which should then be well disinfected. 
The wall paper should be stripped off and burnt, the crevices 
of door and windows and the opening into the chimney 
stopped up, while sulphur candles, protected by a tin tray or 
bucket, are burnt and the room left shut up for 24 hours. All 
the bedclothes, etc., should be sent to a disinfecting chamber, 
where they will be properly treated. When the room has been 
reopened and ventilated, floor and furniture may be washed 
with a weak solution of carbolic acid and water and soft-soap, 
the walls repapered, doors repainted. 

In cases of convulsions where the child should be placed in 
a hot bath up to the neck and when it may be 
frightened by the steam, a blanket should be laid 
over the bath and the child gradually lowered into the water. 



1 88 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

It is dangerous to put children into too hot water, therefore a 
bath thermometer should be kept. Failing that, the elbow may 
be used as a test, the hand being used in so many different 
ways is less sensitive as a guide. 

Temperature of baths. 

Tepid bath 85° to 95° Fahrenheit. 
Warm „ 96° to 104° ,, 
Hot ,, 102° to 110° „ 

Cases of haemorrhage or bleeding require prompt attention, 
. , and valuable lives may be lost while waiting for 

Surgical. . •' ° 

the doctor. It is necessary to distinguish if 
possible the different kinds of bleeding. This is set forth 
in any good manual of Physiology and it is sufficient here 
to point out that it is of three kinds, from the arteries, the 
veins, and the capillaries. The arteries bring pure blood 
from the heart and should one of them be severed serious 
consequences may ensue unless the bleeding is stopped at 
once. 

Arterial blood is known by its bright red colour and by 

the way it rushes forth in jerks or spurts. In 
bleeding. Order to stop this kind of bleeding pressure must 

be applied. This may be done, (i) by pressing 
the two thumbs over the point in the wound from which the 
blood is seen to be issuing. (2) by applying pressure to the 
main artery higher up the limb on the side nearest the heart. 
(3) a tourniquet may be put on. The latter may be rapidly 
improvised by means of a large handkerchief folded into a 
bandage a few inches wide ; in the middle of the folds insert 
a piece of wood, a penny or some hard substance, draw the 
ends of the bandage round the limb and tie it, a stick or 
key may then be inserted and twisted until the bleeding stops. 
If however the wound should be in the neck the tourniquet 
cannot be used and pressure is the only thing to be done 
until the surgeon comes ; the helpers may have to relieve each 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 189 

other, one slipping his thumbs under the other when changing. 
If a hand or foot is wounded the elbow or knee may be 
flexed, the pressure at the bend of the joint helping to diminish 
the bleeding. 

The veins bring blood to the heart, and their contents 
are of a darker colour and flow more slowly. 
Pressure must be applied over the wound, pads biee^cTing^ 
steeped in cold water bound on, and where pos- 
sible the limb must be elevated to diminish the flow of 
blood. One of the most dangerous kinds of 
venous bleeding is that from varicose veins in ancose 



veins. 



the legs ; the same rules apply, elevation of the 
limb, bandages and perfect rest. 

Bleeding from the nose is sometimes difficult to stop. 
Cold substances or wet cloths should be applied 
at the back of the neck on the top of the fr,^^the"nose 
spine ; the nostrils may be syringed out with a 
solution of alum and very cold water or vinegar, or lemon- 
juice and water, even with very strong cold tea; the head 
should not be allowed to hang over the basin. 

Sometimes after extraction of a tooth, haemorrhage con- 
tinues for some time. A small piece of cotton- 
wool dipped into steel drops or into glycerine frfm a'^to.fth. 
or lemon-juice and pressed firmly into the cavity 
will help to stop the bleeding. 

Internal haemorrhage from the lungs or the stomach is 
very dangerous and can only be treated by a 
medical man. In the meantime absolute quiet bieedlng^^ 
is necessary and ice may be given to the patient 
to suck. 

The capillaries are the hair-like blood-vessels which connect 
the arteries with the veins ; when cut or injured 
the blood oozes slowly from them and is easily h^SSirhTge. 
stopped by placing a pad of lint over the bleeding 
part 



190 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

It is very important that cuts should be kept clean or 
blood-poisoning may result. The old-fashioned 
plan of using a cobweb for the purpose of 
stopping the bleeding should never be resorted to. Glass, 
gravel, etc. may be washed out of a wound by pouring cold 
water over before bandaging, and then the edges of the cut 
may be carefully drawn together and strips of sticking plaister 
laid across, not to cover the wound but to keep the edges 
together. The part may then be bandaged up. 

Fractures and dislocations can only be treated by a doctor. 
Fractures ^^^ ^^ ^^ ^^^^^ necessary to understand as far 
and disio- as possible the nature of the injury to prevent 
further mischief. Fractures may easily be recog- 
nized by the following simple rules : 

1. There will be shortening and alteration in the shape 
of the limb. 

2. Inabihty to use the injured leg or arm. 

3. Pain and swelling at the seat of fracture. 

Simple fractures are often converted into compound and 
complicated fractures by the want of knowledge of those whose 
duty it is to render first aid. 

A person suffering from a fracture should never be placed 
in a cab or cart, but be taken home or to the hospital on 
a stretcher. A gate or a shutter may be used for this purpose, 
and coats and cloaks laid down to make it more comfortable. 
Splints may be improvised from an umbrella, long flat pieces 
of wood, or even a broom-handle. Should the leg or thigh 
be fractured, the two feet may be bound together, the sound 
limb acting as a splint to the injured one. Every precaution 
must be taken to prevent jarring or further mischief. 

Dislocations may easily be distinguished from fractures 
as they always occur at a joint. Swelling of the part follows 
soon after dislocation and should be reduced as quickly as 
possible, this can only be done by a duly qualified person. 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 191 

Bites should be treated by pressure of some kind applied 
above the wound so as to prevent the poison 

, ... rr., 1 Bites. 

from gettmg mto the circulation. Ihe wound 
may be sucked and warm water poured over it to induce 
bleeding, which helps to carry off the poison. If the animal 
that caused the bite is known to be rabid, cauterisation should 
be applied. Prompt action is the great thing in order to stop 
the circulation above the wound. Should the bite be inflicted 
by a dog it is a great mistake to have the animal destroyed 
at once unless known to be mad. It should be tied up and 
watched as the bite may only have been inflicted because the 
animal was teased or some other harmless cause. 

A raw onion slowly chewed and swallowed is considered 
an excellent remedy for a sting obtained while 

•^ . Stings. 

eating fruit. For external stings press out by 

means of a small key, and apply soda and water, ammonia 

and water, or the homely blue-bag moistened. 

§ 74. Food plays an important part in the sick-room, 
especially during convalescence. 

In the first place it is absolutely necessary to observe the 
doctor's orders, as disobedience has caused 
many deaths, especially in typhoid fever. In c<x)kery°°"^ 
the second place, the food should be well- 
cooked, punctually and daintily served and at regular intervals, 
the patient should not be asked beforehand what he will take. 
No cooking should be carried on in the sick-room, nor food 
left about. If necessary, milk may be kept on the outside 
window-sill covered over by a clean, ordinary red flower-pot. 
Ice keeps for several days if in a block and wrapped up in a 
blanket on the cellar floor \ it may be easily broken into small 
pieces by means of a hat pin. Sick people, and convalescents 
especially, like a change of diet, and it is not necessary to keep 
to the same thing, such as beef-tea, chicken and jelly day after 
day. Any good cooking book will furnish the names and 
recipes of innumerable nourishing and appetizing dishes suitably 



192 Domestic Economy, [PT. II. 

for the sick-room. It is sometimes necessary to give pre- 
digested or peptonized foods, and the amateur 
^^ ^ ' nurse may have some difificulty in knowing how 
to prepare this. Peptonisation xeriders proteid foods soluble and 
capable of entering the blood. It is accomplished by means of 
liquor pancreaticus or by peptonising powders with the addition 
of a little bicarbonate of soda ; they may be bought at any 
reliable chemist's. In peptonising milk for infants take | pint 
of new milk (it can be boiled first and allowed to grow cold), 
\ pint cold water, and one quarter of a peptonising powder, 
put them in a jug, which is placed in a basin of water as hot as 
the hand can bear, let it stand, shaking occasionally ; in 20 
minutes it may be taken out of the water, sweetened and a tea- 
spoonful or two of cream added. If the milk is not to be used 
at once it may either be boiled or set on ice ; boiling destroys 
the process, putting on ice merely suspends it. Gruel, beef-tea, 
soups, may all be peptonised. Starchy foods should be malted : 
this is done by mixing 3 ozs. of crushed malt (see beer-making) 
in a jug with h pint of cold water. Let it stand 12 hours, 
decant the liquid, straining through folds of muslin until it is 
clear and bright. One tablespoonful of this liquid thoroughly 
mixed with \ pint of gruel will in a few minutes so digest it that 
it will become liquid. 



2. Practical Housekeeping. 

Eco7iomy and Thrift. 

§ 75. It is essential that the housekeeper should fully 
understand the income with w^hich she has to deal or at any 
rate the allowance she will have at her disposal for the purposes 
of keeping house. Most people buy this knowledge by bitter 
experience, whereas all difficulties may be avoided if a few 
simple rules are observed. 



CHAP. X.] 



Hoiisezvifery 



193 



Rent and 
Taxes. 



Food. 



It should be ascertained at the outset of housekeeping how 
much money may be spent, and this should not be planned out 
without leaving some margin for unforeseen events, as expenses 
are apt to increase, and it is far easier to spend more than to 
retrench. Rent depends on many contingencies, 
such as locality, health, work etc.; as a general 
rule one-eighth or one-tenth of the income may be 
devoted to this item, and one-third of the rent may be reckoned 
for taxes. The expenditure on Food depends 
on the style of living ; %s. per head a week is 
the least sum to allow, unless the household be a large one : 
icf. is the usual amount for not less than five in family, or it 
may be reckoned as follows : ^i for the master of the house, 
I5J-. for the mistress, and loi". for each servant. Where possible 
the books should be paid weekly, especially when the income 
is small. This plan checks extravagance and waste. Here 
comes in the difficulty of the occasional fifth week in the 
month, the bugbear of so many housekeepers. In calculating 
expenses, allow thirteen months to the year or reckon the year 
by weeks. If five weeks be allowed for each month in the 
year a small margin is left to meet extras such as occasional 
visitors, parties, etc. 

An income of ^600 a year may be planned out on the 
following lines, but no hard and fast rule can be laid down as 
expenses must vary with the family and locality : 





£ 


s. 


d. 


Rent .... 


60 








Taxes .... 


20 








Fuel .... 


24 








Household Laundry 


20 


16 





Servants' Laundry . 


6 


6 





Food .... 


221 


6 





Wages .... 


52 








Gas and lighting 


10 








Clothing .... 


So 









13 



194 



Domestic Economy. 



[PT. II. 



£ 


^. 


^. 


40 








40 








25 


12 






Education 

Holiday 

Sundries 

It is impossible to give a number of detailed tables of 
expenditure, but one more showing the very least on which 
people can set up housekeeping and keep a servant may be 
useful. 

Income ;^2oo a year 





£ 


s. 


d. 


Rent and Taxes 


30 








Food 


78 





(^i. loj-. od. a week) 


Servants' wages 


15 








Clothing 


40 








Fuel and lighting 


12 








Laundry 


7 








Sundries 


18 









In an income of ^600 a year allow ^2 a month winter 
and summer for coals. Washing will come to about ^20 a 
year ; it is generally possible to get the serv^ants' washing done 
for \os. 6d. a quarter each — ^£2. 2s. od. a year. A certain sum" 
should be put aside for holiday expenses, for unforeseen con- 
tingencies such as a doctor's billetc, and for sundries which 
include cabs, stationery, newspapers, amusements etc., and a 
tenth of the income should be devoted to charity. 

Servants' wages vary with the style of living and the work 



Servants' rcquir 


sd: 


wages. 




A Cook 


gets from ^18 and upwards 


A Housemaid 


,, » ;£i5to^25 


A Parlourmaid 


„ „ ^18 to £zo 


A General Servant 


„ „ £^ tO;£25 


A Laundry-maid 


„ „ ^12 to ^30 


A Butler 


)j >5 £a'^ to ;£ioo with board 


A Footman 


„ „ ^20 to £60 and some livery. 



CHAP. X.] Hoiiseivifery. 195 

In very few houses are regular allowances given out for 
each servant, except in the matter of tea and sugar. The 
following list may help mistresses to calculate 

... ■' . ^ Quantities. 

quantities in ordering. 

For meat the consumption depends on the number in 
family, a small family requiring a larger proportion than a large 
one. For the former i lb. a head should be reckoned, whereas 
\ to \ lb. with bone is sufficient for the larger family. The 
butcher's book should not exceed 7 lbs. a head weekly. Butter 
\ lb. a head weekly with, in a small family, an extra \ lb. for 
cooking ; more if many cakes are made at home. Of tea, 
coffee or cocoa 4 ozs. a head weekly are sufficient. Sugar i lb 
per head, bacon i lb. a week, cheese \ lb., milk i quart a week 
for each person. In ordering bread allow i lb. per head a day. 
These quantities are merely meant as a guide for a young 
housekeeper ; experience will soon show where more or less is 
required and the quantities must be brought within the limits 
of the income. 

§ 76. Besides the items included in the foregoing tables 
the question of life insurance should always be 
considered. Where future prospects are good, it insurance and 
may be possible to dispense with this otherwise Benefit 

. ^ . . ^ Societies. 

indispensable provision for the future. A man 
may insure his life between the ages of 28 or 30 for ;£5oo for 
about ;£i5 per annum. Life insurance may be effected either 
through a well-known Society or through the Government by 
means of the Post Office by an immediate payment or by an 
annual payment extending over a number of years. At the age 
of 25 a man can insure his life for p^ioo by the payment of an 
annual premium of £^2. os. 6d. through life or of ^£2. 12s. od., 
payment to cease at the age of 60. Besides life insurance, 
there are many ways of encouraging thrift by means of the 
Post Office Savings-Bank or the many well-known trustworthy 
Societies such as the Odd Fellows, the Foresters or the Benefit 
Societies on the Hojloway system attached to the various 

13—2 



196 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

political parties. The Post Office Savings-Bank gives interest 
at the rate of 2| per cent, upon every pound, as much as £^'^0 
may be deposited in one year, and ;£^2oo is the highest total 
amount received from one person. The advantages of the Post 
Office system are, its perfect safety, its convenience for deposit 
and withdrawal, its strict secrecy. All correspondence is carried 
on free of charge, bank books and forms of withdrawal are 
provided by the Government. For children and others desirous 
of saving their pennies, slips of paper marked with twelve 
divisions for postage stamps may be obtained from the post 
office, and when twelve stamps have been obtained, it can be 
handed in as a shilling deposit. The system of Annuities 
undertaken by the Government through the Post Office is of 
two kinds, the Immediate^ obtained by payment of a sum down, 
the Deferred^ obtained by paying a certain sum down or yearly 
for a certain number of years, at the end of which period these 
payments cease, and the annuity commences. All particulars 
as to Annuities or the purchase of Government Stocks may be 
obtained free of cost on application to the nearest post office. 
The collecting Savings-Bank system established in connection 
with the Charity Organization Society meets the various needs 
of the wage-earning class. This method increases the spirit of 
wholesome independence of character, and helps those needing 
help, to help themselves. 

The Benefit Societies provide for sickness or death \ For 
joining the Odd Fellows a medical certificate is required and 
members are admitted between the ages of 18 and 44. An 
entrance fee of 2s. 6d. to 5^". is demanded and a weekly sub- 
scription of 6d. to IS, 6d. After 6 months a member may 
receive 2>s. to 20s. per week during sickness for 12 months and 
during the following 12 months half the amount, afterwards 
one-fourth as long as illness lasts. ;£8 to ;£2o at death, j£/^ 
tO;£^io at the wife's death. For joining the Foresters, a man 

^ The rules of these clubs vary somewhat with the district in which 
they are established. 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 197 

must be between 18 and 40, of good health and character. 
Birth and medical certificates are required, the entrance fee, 
according to age from 2s. 6d. to 5^. After 12 months the 
member receives 10s. to 20s. per week during sickness, ;£i2 to 
£2^ at death, £6 to ;£i2 at the wife's death. 

The Benefit Societies connected with the political parties 
have the following objects: (i) to pay a weekly allowance to 
members in times of ordinary sickness ; (2) to ensure the 
payment of a sum of money on the death of a member to his 
or her nominee or representatives; (3) to make provision for 
the maintenance of members in old age. These objects are 
obtained by the voluntary subscriptions of members in accord- 
ance with a table drawn up and submitted to those wishing 
to join. On attaining the age of 65, members retire from the 
Society and receive the whole of their savings without deduction. 

The Co-operative Societies, organizations managed chiefly 
by the working-people themselves, present other methods of 
thrift, self-control and self-help. This system was started in 
1844 by workmen in the north of England, who devised the 
plan of dividing the profits of a business among the customers 
by a system of tickets given with each purchase and exchange- 
able for money or shares. This system flourishes best in the 
north, and has not taken deep root in the south, even in 
London. The system of insurance can successfully meet the 
difficulty of maintenance during sickness, but it is less easy to 
apply to the need of medical treatment. The system of Provi- 
dent Dispensaries is an application of the principle of insurance 
to this need. Where these dispensaries are so placed that they 
are not obliged to compete with free hospitals, they prove a 
valuable means of securing for their members medical attend- 
ance at very small cost. 

Besides the questions of insurance and saving, a young 
housekeeper on a small income will do well to 

^ Income Tax. 

understand something about the Income Tax. 

For this purpose it is necessary to know and to put down all 



198 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

the sources from whence the income is derived. At the time 
of writing the tax amounts to i^. in the £^^ but abatement up 
to £,100 a year may be claimed according to the following 

table : — 

When the Income exceeds £\(iO but does not exceed ;!^400, an 
Abatement of £\()0 may be claimed. 

When the Income exceeds ;!{^40o but does not exceed ^{^500, an 
Abatement of ^150 may be claimed. 

When the Income exceeds ;^5oo but does not exceed ^600, an 
Abatement of £\^o may be claimed. 

When the Income exceeds ;!^6oo but does not exceed ^700, an 
Abatement of ;i^70 may be claimed. 

The form to be filled up may be obtained from the Inland 
Revenue, Somerset House, London, W.C. or through the local 
office of the Inland Revenue. Total exemption from the pay- 
ment of Income Tax may be claimed for an income of under 
^160. The claim for abatement may be made as soon as 
the year's income has been received. 

Certain duties or taxes are payable annually and should be 
Duties. considered when portioning out the income, i.e. 

dog license yi". (id. ; armorial bearings £,\. \s. od., 
if used on carriages ^2. 2s. od. Carriages are taxed according 
to the number of wheels, and every man servant 155'. Receipts 
upon payment of money amounting to ^2 or upwards should 
be signed over id. stamp. 

§ 77. Discount is an allowance made where goods are sold 

or purchased, generally for prompt or advanced 

payment. Five per cent, equals is. in the 

pound, 10 per cent, equals 2s., 2 J per cent, equals 6d., i^ 

equals 3</. The general rule for finding commercial discount is 

to multiply the amount by the rate per cent, and divide by 10 3. 

A young housekeeper sometimes finds a difficulty in dealing 

with cheques, therefore a short explanation as 

Cheques. . , r ^ a 

to their nature may not be out 01 place. A 
cheque is an authority for a Banker to pay money and is 
of three kinds : cheques payable to " Bearer," to " Order," 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 199 

and "Crossed cheques." A cheque "to Bearer" is payable to 
any person who may present it. A cheque "to Order" must 
first be endorsed by the person to whom the cheque is made 
payable, that is, he must write his name on the back. A 
"crossed cheque" is one on which two parallel lines are drawn 

and the words "& Co." written between, thus // - When 




forwarding money by post, crossed cheques should always be 
used, as they can only be cashed through a bank. 

In order that money spent on housekeeping may be 
accounted for, and to be able to ascertain quickly whether the 
amount laid aside for this purpose is being overdrawn or not, 
it is necessary to keep accounts, but these may be of the 
simplest kind. A cash book contains an account of all cash 
receipts and cash payments, with the discount allowed. It 
should be a book ruled for money and arranged as follows : — 



Vr. Cr. 



Date. 



Enter here all monies 
received. 



Date, j 

Enter here all payments, 
! with discounts deducted. 



To balance : cast up the Dr. side and the Cr. side sepa- 
rately, find the difference which exists between the two sides 
and place that difference on the lighter. The meaning of an 
account is not altered by this process, the difference which 
existed between the original entries is still the same, but the 
amount is now visible. This difference, added to the Cr. side., 
should agree with the cash actually in hand. If the difference 
has to be placed upon the Dr. side it mnplies either that some 
monies received have not been duly entered or that money has 
been borrowed from some source to pay bills. The term 
Debtor (Dr.) usually means the one who owes. Creditor (Cr.) 
one to whom money is due. They are also used as adjectives — 
Dr. side, Cr. side ; then they simply distinguish one side of the 
account from the other. " To debit " means to place an 
amount on the left-hand or Dr. side of an account ; " to 



200 Domestic Economy, [PT. IT. 

credit " means to place an amount on the right-hand or Cr. 
side of an account. It is advisable to have a fixed time for 
balancing accounts, and where economy is an object this 
should be done weekly. 



Domestic Servants and their duties. 

§ 78. The engaging and management of servants is con- 
fessedly one of the chief difficulties of the present 

Servants. , . . *■ . 

day and one which threatens to revolutionize the 
system of Housekeeping which up to the present has formed 
one of the chief features of an English home. It is impossible 
to discuss this burning question, but as probably ignorance on 
the part of both mistress and maid has a great deal to do with 
the matter, especially in ordinary households, a few practical 
suggestions may be of use to the young housekeeper. A 
reference to the scale of servants' wages w^as made on p. 194 
in connection with the division of income, so that we pass at 
once to the engaging of servants and the various duties ex- 
pected from them. 

The tw^o methods generally employed to obtain a servant 
are by advertisement or through a registry office. 
Offices^*'^^ In both these ways great care must be exercised; 

in the first place that the advertisement is bona- 
fide, in the second that the office bears a good character. The 
good old-fashioned way of obtaining a servant through the 
Vicar's wife in a Country Parish has nearly passed away. 

When engaging a servant spare no trouble in finding out as 

much as possible about the person you propose 

Servant?."^ to make a member of your household, and this 

is especially necessary with regard to nurses, to 

whom the great responsibility of the early training and care of 

a child are to be confided. 

The first essential is not to take a servant unless a personal 
interview^ is possible, or failing that, the last mistress has been 
corresponded with personally, not through a third person. A 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 201 

servant who has been long out of place should be carefully 
enquired about and no story believed unless it can be authen- 
ticated. It is never advisable to engage a servant whose 
master or mistress has gone abroad, unless a friend of the 
family can be interviewed, and a domestic, who speaks badly 
of her last place and accuses her employers of drunkenness 
should be avoided. At the same time perfection is not to be 
had even should it be expected ; as in all intercourse with our 
fellow creatures it is a case of " bear and forbear." In arranging 
for an interview with a former mistress, a stamped envelope 
for reply should be enclosed, and when the appointment 
is settled it should be punctually kept. There is no law 
compelling a mistress to give a personal interview or even a 
character, but where possible it should always be done. Any- 
one with moderate shrewdness can soon find out whether the 
mistress is just or not, by observing whether the house looks 
tidy and well-managed etc. Absolute truthfulness should be 
observed in giving a character, suspicions should never be 
mentioned, and in giving a written character nothing should be 
said that cannot be proved. 

It is customary to give a month's notice on either side or a 
month's wages unless a special arrangement has been made. 
If a servant be dismissed without notice, he or she cannot 
claim a month's board wages unless it was included in the 
original agreement. A servant may be dismissed without 
notice for the following causes, which must be provable : 
dishonesty, drunkenness, immorality in the house, hopeless 
incompetence. Masters and mistresses are not bound to 
provide a doctor or medicine for their servants, but if they 
send for the doctor they are bound to pay the fee and cannot 
deduct it from the wages. Neither can a master or mistress 
legally claim compensation or deduct from wages for broken 
articles however careless the servant may have been, unless an 
agreement to that effect has been made beforehand. A 
mistress who has given a servant a character upon the strength 



202 Domestic Economy. [PT. 1 1. 

of which she has obtained a situation should not, if the servant 
leaves at the end of a few weeks, consent to be referred to 
again, unless the reason for leaving be clearly not the servant's 
fault : the character should be given by the last mistress. In 
engaging a servant set forth the duties as plainly as possible. 
There is no better plan in household management than for the 
mistress to think out a table of work for each servant, whether 
she has one or several. The plan must vary with each house- 
hold, be written or type-written very plainly and pasted on 
card-board and hung up in each department ; this saves much 
friction and avoids that formula so well-known to housekeepers : 
" It is not my place." It is often somewhat difficult to know 
exactly what should be expected from each servant, and in 
making out a time-table it is necessary to know something of 
the duties which should fall to each and also in planning out 
the work to remember that servants require leisure and fresh 
air, and no household can be expected to progress or run 
smoothly where the comforts and welfare of the servants are 
totally disregarded. Where young under-servants are kept, 
such as kitchen or scullery maids or that mysterious being 
known as a "tweeny" (between kitchen and house) the mistress 
should have a kindly eye to their well-being and see that they 
are not over-worked and get sufficient food, sleep and exercise. 

A butler in ordinary households is the chief servant and 
has the charge of the wine and plate. His 
DuUes^"^^ duties further include waiting at meals, carving, 

the serving of wine, tea and coffee. He answers 
the front door and drawing-room bells, announces visitors and 
attends to messages, letters and cards. In most houses he has 
charge of the billiard room and study, and is responsible for 
his own pantry and the safe shutting-up of the house at night. 

The footman is sometimes the complement to the butler, 
sometimes he combines the duties of a valet and a parlour- 
maid. Where only one is kept he cleans the boots, knives, 
windows, calls the gentlemen of the household, lays breakfast 



CHAP. X.] Housezvifery. 203 

clears away, washes up glass, silver and china. He also fills 
the coal-scuttles, trims lamps and attends to the fires and the 
bells. His duties also include the cleaning of silver, waiting, 
carrying up hot water to the gentlemen's rooms and care of 
their clothes. A parlourmaid is a female butler and her duties 
are the same as his. 

A housemaid's work depends to a certain extent on the 
number of servants kept, but her special duties are dusting and 
putting rooms in order every day with special cleaning of the 
same once a week. She also has care of the housemaid's 
closet and cloths and has to attend to the cleaning of brushes, 
combs and sponges. A single-handed kitchenmaid will have 
the kitchen range to clean and light in the morning, the 
kitchen itself to clean and any passages that may be allotted to 
her. She will have all the dishes, pots and pans to keep and 
the vegetables to clean and cook. She has also to prepare the 
servants' food and to assist the cook and wash up. Where a 
scullery-maid is kept, most of the cleaning devolves on her and 
the preparation of the vegetables, the kitchen-maid doing all 
the plain cooking and helping the cook. In a small establish- 
ment where only a cook and house-parlourmaid are kept, the 
duties should be very carefully thought out and the mistress 
will have to undertake some of the lighter work herself, such as 
washing and dusting china and " knic-nacks," sorting and 
counting the linen for the laundry, mending and putting away 
house linen, arranging the flowers. The following table for a 
house where only two maids are kept may be useful. Wherever 
possible a boy should be employed if only for a couple of hours 
daily, to clean knives and boots, fill coal-scuttles and go on 
errands. 

The Cook should light kitchen fire at 6 a.m. 
Sweep basement, passage, hall, and dining cook's°Duties. 
room. Clean boots and knives* (this can be 

* It is usual for the housemaid to clean the dining-room knives and the 
ladies' boots, while the cook does the kitchen knives and gentlemen's boots. 



204 Domestic Economy. [PT. 1 1. 

done over-night if wished), dust the dining-room and prepare 
breakfast for both kitchen and dining-room. 

Time: — Kitchen breakfast 7.30 a.m. Dining-room 8.30 a.m. 
After breakfast clear away and wash up, having everything tidy 
in time for the mistress' visit to the kitchen to order meals. 
Answer door-bell in the morning. Cook the meals and wash 
up plates and dishes afterwards, leave the kitchen tidy for the 
night. 

Special Work. 

Monday. Polish brasses and tins. 

Tuesday. Turn out larder and pantry. 

Wednesday. Clean the dining-room and hall. 
Thursday. „ „ servants' room. 

Friday. ,, „ kitchen range and flues. 

Saturday. ,, ,, kitchen and prepare for Sunday. 

The House - Paidoiiiinaid should rise at 7 a. m., take 

up early tea (if required) and hot water at 

House-^° 8 a.m. Sweep and dust the stairs. Lay the 

parlourmaid kitchcn and dining-room breakfasts. After 

Daily. ° 

breakfast, do the bedrooms and drawing-room. 
Lay the table for the middle-day meal, clear away, wash up 
glass and silver and be ready to answer the door by 3 p.m. 
(It is better to allow \ hour before lunch for the housemaid 
to change her dress and get ready for the afternoon.) Bring 
up afternoon tea at 5 p.m. Lay the dinner, take up hot 
water. Wait at table. Wash up silver and glass. Lay kitchen 
supper. Arrange bedrooms for the night. Take up hot water. 

Special duties. 

Monday. Prepare clothes for the laundress and turn 

out the best bedroom. 
Tuesday. Turn out one or more bedrooms. 

Wednesday. Turn out the drawing-room. 
Thursday. Turn out the study and bathroom. Clean 

the stair rods. 



CHAP. X,] Housewifery. 205 

Friday. Clean the silver and tidy the housemaid's 

pantry and the china closet. 
Saturday. Count the clothes from the laundress, air, 
and put them away. 

At the end of each list of duties it is well to add the 
arrangements made for going out on Sundays and week-days, 
and when possible specify the time allotted to each maid. 

Whenever a new servant is engaged, she should be given a 
list of the various things under her care, the mistress keeping 
the duplicate. Even where no change takes place in the 
domestic arrangements, these lists should be gone through 
carefully at least once a year and worn out or broken articles 
replaced or mended. 

' No beer ' is the best rule, and certainly no ' beer money ' ; 
the latter often induces drinking. Board wages vary from 7^. 
to 15^. a week each ; money for laundry should never be included 
in the wages. The allowance varies from 9^. to ij'. 6<^. a week 
except in the case of nurses wearing white dresses, when a 
larger sum is needed. 

To furnish a housemaid's closet the following are required : 

A box known as a housemaid^s box containing a pair of 
gloves, a coarse piece of crash or sacking for the front of the 
fire-place, brushes, black lead, bath brick, etc. Three to six 
dusters, dust sheets, two good chamois leathers, a set of 
brooms and brushes — the latter for cleaning plate as well as 
rooms, a decanter drainer, a wooden bowl for washing-up in 
and another for rinsing purposes, half-a-dozen tea and glass 
cloths. As a rule the housemaid should wash out her own 
cloths and dusters. 

The question of food is sometimes a difficulty. In small 
families it will be found by far the best way to allow the 
servants to make their supper off what is left from the dining- 
room late dinner, always with a proviso that any special dish 
is to be reserved. Under these circumstances a simple lunch 
may be provided for the kitchen. Sometimes, and especially 



2o6 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

where there are children, it is advisable to have the joint at 
lunch time when the servants get it for their own dinner. With 
reference to meat other than that allowed at dinner, a ''relish" 
as it is termed should be given three times a week, and if only 
a plain supper is given, a relish may be allowed for tea on those 
when a plain breakfast has been the order of the day. If the 
mistress knows how long things should last, she can soon check 
any waste. The actual food allowance per head in the 
kitchen is : half a pound of butter, one pound of sugar and 
a quarter of a pound of tea per week ; one third of a pint of 
milk daily. 

After the planning and arranging the servants' work, the 
linen cupboard comes next in importance. In 
cupboTrd olden days the plenishing of this especial cup- 

board was the pride of the housewife ; now that 
spinning is no longer fashionable and that everything can be 
bought, this part of household furnishing is often neglected. 
First as to quantities. It is a mistake to have too little, each 
article is then constantly in use and there is not enough to use 
on an emergency. This linen cupboard should be the pride of 
the mistress and tended accordingly. The usual allowance is 
three pairs of sheets to each bed, or in some cases five pair 
between two, with three slips to each pillow, three hand towels 
per head and three bath towels to each couple. In a small 
family the average should be half-a-dozen towels to each person. 
Bath sheets are a matter of taste but at least one should be 
allowed to each bedroom. Table cloths generally have twelve 
napkins to match them. In some houses, it is customary to 
have different cloths for lunch and breakfast, to what are used 
for dinner, in which case three dinner cloths with napkins to 
match, and three breakfast cloths, with a best cloth and napkins 
for special occasions, will be sufficient to start with. For quilts 
and toilet covers, two quilts for each bed should be purchased, 
the same rule applying to toilet covers. Three roller towels 
should be reckoned for each roller and at least half-a-dozen 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 207 

cloths and dusters to each maid. The servants' bed-clothes 
and table linen should be on precisely the same scale but 
different in quality. Besides these, there are fancy cloths of all 
kinds, such as tea, sideboard and tray cloths, d'oyleys etc., but 
they vary in quantity and quality with each household. House- 
linen varies considerably in price, and a list may be obtained 
from any reliable firm. 

§ 79. Associated with lighter, warmer days, and the promise 
of summer, comes the well-known, much-dreaded 
household upheaval known as spring cleaning, cleaning 
After months of gloom and wet, of fires and 
artificial light, the reappearance of the sun draws attention to 
many a corner that has escaped even a practised mistress' eye 
and shows how soiled all curtains and hangings have become. 
With the lengthening days a good housewife sets about looking 
through stores, seeing what white- washing and papering is 
required and planning alterations. Where work-people have to 
be employed, it is best to take advantage of the absence of 
several members of the family, leaving a responsible person in 
charge ; but where ordinary spring cleaning has to be gone 
through a little planning and arranging will enable it to be 
carried out to the minimum discomfort of the inhabitants. 
One room or floor may be done at a time, the whole house 
need not be turned upside down at once. If possible choose a 
fine, dry day. The bed-clothes should all be 
removed and the bedstead thoroughly cleaned bedroom" °"^^ 
and dusted, the mattresses well beaten and 
looked carefully over to see that the tick is not worn or any of 
the buttons loose. The blankets should be well shaken out of 
doors and those no longer in use put carefully away packed up 
with napthalene or camphor to keep off moths. Turpentine 
applied freely to the places they are believed to infest is the 
best cure. Brown paper may be stewed in turpentine and 
fastened underneath all the furniture. Things packed away 
may be sprinkled with dried alum powdered with bitter apple 



2o8 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

or pepper. It is well to change the remedies occasionally as 
after a time moths appear to get over their objections to any 
particular one. Blankets should not be washed too often and 
only by a competent person who understands the cleaning 
of woollen goods (see page 224). Curtains and valances 
should be well brushed and shaken and then pinned up. The 
bed is then made if the room is in use, covered closely with 
dusting sheets. These are best made of holland, crash or 
twilled unbleached calico. They should always be used one 
way, the hem showing the right side so that the clean side may 
always be against the furniture. As many articles as possible 
should be removed from the room and each brushed, dusted, 
and polished, and covered closely with a dusting sheet. Rugs 

or movable squares may be rolled and taken out 
Ru^s^^^^^"*^ of doors for shaking or beating. A carpet 

should be laid over a clothes line and beaten 
with canes until the dust ceases. It should then be laid flat 
and brushed on both sides with a carpet brush, folded by the 
seams and put away until wanted. To clean carpets, rub 
them over with a damp sponge and dry with a coarse cloth. 
Salt and vinegar should be put into the water in the proportion 
of one table-spoonful of each to a quart of water. 

These floor-cloths should not be washed too often but may 

be kept fresh and bright by rubbing over with a 

dry cloth. Once a week they may be washed 
with warm water and soap and when thoroughly dry rubbed 
over with a flannel dipped in milk. Beeswax and turpentine 
will give a high polish, but render the linoleum so slippery as 
to be dangerous. 

When the pictures have been taken down, the chimney 

should be swept and the grate and fire-irons 
fir^-'^h-cms^"'^ clcancd and polished. It is advisable to sweep 

the room before polishing the grate. The black- 
lead should be mixed with a little turpentine and applied 
lightly and then brushed ofl" with a hard grate brush and finally 



CHAP. X.] Houseivifery. 209 

polished with a soft brush. Steel fireirons may be cleaned 
with fine emery paper and polished with a leather. For keeping 
them all bright use powdered bath-brick and equal quantities of 
water and methylated spirit made into a paste. Brass fenders 
etc. may be treated with ordinary polishing paste or sapolio; or, 
if much tarnished, a cut lemon or a little paraffin oil rubbed on 
will clean them beautifully. This same treatment applies to 
stair-rods, copper kettles, etc. Most modern copper and brass 
goods are laquered (this is done to prevent tarnish) and should 
never be cleaned with any kind of polishing paste or powder. 
They only need wiping with a damp cloth and polishing with a 
leather or soft duster. 

Most hearths are now tiled and only need wiping with a 
damp cloth, but should they be made of stone, dearths, 
clean in the following way : Take up all the dust 
from the hearth with dustpan and brush and wash all over with 
flannel and warm water. Then rub on hearth-stone or pipe- 
clay, the latter mixed with water or milk to the thickness of 
cream. Wring the flannel dry and wipe all over to get a smooth 
surface, this should be done across from side to side, not round 
and round. Instead of pipe-clay, Venetian red, a powder sold 
at the chemist's, is sometimes used. This should be mixed 
with water, put on with a brush as smoothly as possible and 

left to dry. 

Cupboards and drawers should be turned out, scrubbed, 
and when thoroughly dry, re-papered. 

Pictures, when carefully dusted, should have the glass 
washed with ammonia and water and when dry 

•1 r u Walls and 

polished with a dry cloth ; gilt frames may be pictures, 
gently wiped with a damp cloth. Small soft 
brushes with long light bamboo handles can now be obtained 
for brushing down walls, or in their absence a broom may be 
used covered with a soft duster or cloth, care must be taken 
to change the cloth as soon as it gets soiled. Windows. 
Windows in many places can be cleaned by men 

B. ^4 



210 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

whose special business it is, and in the case of high windows 
this is generally the best method and prevents accidents which 
often occur when servants sit on a window sill and can only 
reach the panes by leaning out in a most dangerous manner. 
The dust should be rubbed off the windows first both inside 
and out and the sills washed ; the glass may then be cleaned 
with a chamois leather or a sponge wrung out of tepid water, 
and polished with another leather; ammonia added to the water 
gives the glass greater brilliance. Hot or even warm water 

should never be used to clean paint, as it destroys 
w^^cTwork ^^ varnish and the paint soon wears off. In 

cleaning wood-work wash, beginning at the 
bottom and working upward, with a flannel and soap-suds, this 
prevents dirty marks from running down and making streaks : 
rinse with a sponge and tepid water and dry with a soft cloth. 

In sweeping a room, begin at one end and sweep 
^^^^ ' towards the fire-place or towards one spot from 
which the dust may be gathered up. Tea-leaves are used to 
prevent the dust from rising and should first be put into a 
colander, washed in cold water and squeezed dry. If put 
straight on to a floor or carpet they are apt to stain. Boards 
should be swept with a hair brush and carpets with a twig. A 
so-called carpet-sweeper requires careful use and is apt to take 
the nap off the carpet as well as the dust. When the carpets 
have been taken up and the room swept, the floor should be 

scrubbed, and care must be taken not to do this 

late in the afternoon if the room is in use. There 
are a few important points to remember in scouring rooms. 
I. Scrub the way of the grain of the wood. 2. Change the 
water directly it is dirty. 3. Always leave the doors and 
windows open after scrubbing so that the air may dry the 
room. 4. Choose a fine day for the operation. 

Grease marks may be removed by making a paste of fuller's 
earth and hot water and laying it when cold in a thick layer 
over the marks. It should remain on for at least 24 hours and 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 211 

then be scoured off. In many houses now the boards are 
stained and rugs laid down here and there. A 
good floor stain may be made as follows : — Floors and 

I lb. of burnt umber ground in oil, i gallon Furniture 

... Polish. 

linseed oil. Boil the oil and mix with it enough 
umber to make the colour desired. It may be tried on a 
piece of wood. Rub the mixture into the floor, the way of 
the grain of the wood, with a piece of flannel tied on to a 
piece of stick. When dry, rub off the superfluous stain and 
the floor is then ready for bees-waxing. Permanganate of 
potash dissolved in water also makes a good floor stain. 

Floorine and other preparations may be bought at any 
ironmonger's, but the first staining is the most important and 
should be done by a competent person. If not well done the 
stain wears off in patches and there is no remedy except having 
the floor planed, always a matter of expense. Polished floors 
should be beeswaxed and polished once a week. The beeswax, 
about \s. 6d. a lb., should be finely shredded into a jar, 
covered with turpentine and placed near gentle heat until 
dissolved and of the consistency of thick cream. This polish 
may also be used for furniture, but it will spoil good dusters, 
and old soft rags should be kept for the purpose ; they can be 
burnt when dirty. Another recipe for furniture polish is ^ pint 
turpentine, ^ pint linseed oil, \ pint methylated spirit and 
\ pint vinegar mixed well together and put into a wide-necked 
bottle. Boiled linseed oil may be used for rubbing up old oak 
furniture, oil and vinegar mixed together in equal proportions 
are excellent for furniture cleaning. 

Marble is found either as forming a top to the washstand or 
as part of the fire-place, and as a rule soap and 

. . Marble 

water will be sufficient to keep it clean. If very 
dirty and stained, monkey brand soap or hot vinegar and water 
may be used; if not successful the following recipe may be 
tried : Boil | lb. soap with i J pints of water ; stir in 3 lbs. of 
whitening. The mixture should be applied with a flannel, left 

14 — 2 



212 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

on for some hours, then washed off with water. Sapolio also 
may be used ; it is very injurious to marble washstands to let 
them lie wet constantly; they should be dried after use. 

Wash toilet ware with soda and hot water, using a house 
flannel or a little mop made of tow or rag on a 
Toiletware. stick. Water bottles should be allowed to Stand 
with tea leaves and vinegar or salt and vinegar 
in them and then be well shaken until clean and rinsed 
until clear. Glasses may be washed in cold water and polished 
with a soft linen cloth. If greasy, wash first in warm soda and 
water. 

When the bedroom is thoroughly dry, the various articles 
of furniture may be replaced in order, any fireirons or other 
steel goods not in use may be thoroughly greased or rubbed 
over with paraffin and wrapped up in brown paper. For 
turning out a sitting room proceed in the same manner as for a 
bedroom, taking care to brush all sofas and chairs well, 
standing them on a sheet meanwhile, if the carpet cannot be 
taken up. 

§ 80. In making out a time-table of a servant's duties, time 
must always be allowed for cleaning the silver, 
piate!^ ^^" ^ careful house-parlourmaid will wash the forks 

and spoons thoroughly every day and a little 
ammonia in the water will help to keep them bright and 
untarnished. A basket lined with green baize should be 
provided and a good chamois leather so that each article may 
be polished before being placed on the table. Salt-cellars 
should be emptied every day and the inside as well as the 
outside be carefully wiped over. The plate-basket should be 
locked up in a safe place at night and the articles counted over 
at least once a month. For the special cleaning, which should 
take place once a week, two brushes, some soft rag or pieces of 
flannel, a chamois leather and some plate powder are required. 
Plate powder should be bought with caution as some kinds 
contain quicksilver, which in time has an injurious effect. The 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 213 

best are made of precipitated whiting and jeweller's rouge, and 
•this may be made at home. To precipitate whiting scrape a 
quantity into a piece of fine muslin, place it over a jug of 
water, letting the part of the muslin containing the whiting be 
in the water. After standing like this for some time it will be 
found that the whiting has passed through the muslin to the 
bottom of the jug, while the grit remains behind. The water 
is then poured off and the whiting is ready for use. Plate 
powder may be moistened with a little spirit and rubbed on 
thinly ; when dry it is brushed off and the silver polished with 
a leather. 

Knives when dirty should be placed in a jug of warm water 
so as not to allow the handles to get wet. After 
wiping them, stains may be removed by rubbing 
the blade with potato parings or with monkey brand soap. 
They should be wiped and rubbed on a board with brick-dust. 
The brick-dust should be scraped on to the board and the 
knife rubbed horizontally with the shoulder of the knife against 
the edge of the board. For the point rub up and down. The 
knives are then dusted with a cloth and put all one way in a 
knife-box. Instead of a board a cork may be used, wetting 
one end and dipping it in bath-brick and rubbing the knife up 
and down. A piece of board may be covered with a bit of 
soft carpet and used for rubbing the knives, this will give them 
a high polish. Knife machines are sold for about 305'., the price 
varies with the number of knives they can take ; they save time 
and labour, but wear out the knives very quickly. Knife 
handles may be cleaned wdth lemon and salt or with monkey 
brand soap. 

Zinc or galvanised iron baths and pails should be washed 
with hot water, soap and soda. If furred inside 
scrape with a knife and rub hard with a piece of utensils 
cloth dipped in paraffin. Let the paraffin dry on, 
then polish with dry powdered bath-brick. 

It is not always easy to get boots well cleaned, and should 



214 Domestic Economy. [pt. II. 

a boy be employed for this purpose, he will probably need 
Cleaning of teaching before satisfactory results can be ob-" 
Boots and taincd. In the first place he must be taught to 

Shoes. ^. . . . ^ ° 

discrimmate between patent leather and ordinary 
boots, and to keep a bottle of prepared polish for brown boots 
with separate rags for applying the same. The dirt should be 
brushed off first and the heel may be scraped with a piece of 
wood or an old knife. The blacking should be mixed to a 
creamy consistency with vinegar and applied lightly with a 
sponge. Some people think the vinegar hurts the leather, but 
it is difficult to get a good polish without. Blacking can be 
bought ready mixed for use. When the mixture has been 
rubbed over the boot thinly, the shining brush must be applied 
immediately, this brush should always be kept quite dry. 
Patent leather should be treated with cream or vaseline ; a 
mutton bone rubbed on ordinary leather will soften it. Glace 
kid should be sponged, allowed to dry and then thoroughly 
polished with a soft rag or handkerchief, which is slightly oiled 
occasionally. Boots and shoes will wear twice as long if they 
are placed on trees directly they are removed. 

So many and varied are the requirements of a house, that 
it is somewhat difficult to make anything like a complete 
collection of what is wanted by each individual housekeeper. 
Many will have inherited special recipes for polishes and plate 
powders etc., but it is hoped that the foregoing suggestions 
will enable a young housekeeper to understand some of the 
many duties that fall to her lot. 



3. Laundry Work. 

§ 81. Before entering upon the details of Laundry ^^^ork 
it is necessary here to consider it from two different stand- 
points ; first that of the mistress of a house, secondly that of 
a teacher or manageress of a laundry. For anyone desiring 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery, 215 

to take the latter post, a thorough course of laundry work 
'in some good technical school, with the addition later of a 
short time spent in a steam laundry to learn packing and 
sorting on a large scale, is strongly to be recommended. The 
mistress of a house will probably find this question of cleanli- 
ness one of the most difficult she has to solve, after the 
much debated one of domestic service. Cleanliness in respect 
to apparel and bed-clothes is very important and is too often 
neglected ; this is probably due to want of thought and 
method, but now that personal hygiene is being taught in 
nearly all schools from the Fifth Standard upwards, any dis- 
regard of these matters should be looked upon as false 
economy. The health of the home depends in great measure 
on the attention paid to cleanliness and on the manner in 
which this is carried out. Formerly washing was chiefly done 
at home, and "washing-day" was frequently a source of 
domestic disorganization. In the present day, although still 
carried on in many homes on the ground of economy, the 
establishment of public laundries with their labour-saving ap- 
pliances has proved a boon to many, the vans fetching the 
soiled linen at the beginning of the week and returning it 
clean at the end of the week. Many who have travelled 
abroad, especially in parts of Austria, will regret "washing 
at home " when they see the way it is carried out there, but 
unfortunately in most places in England there is no space 
for the erection of the outside laundries which belong to 
each house or group of houses, nor is there the supply of 
water which is such a feature in foreign towns and villages. 
The question of public washhouses has been keenly de- 
bated and should be a help to many living in cottages with 
little or no accommodation for either washing or drying, but 
the reason they have been less successful than might be 
expected, is probably due to the fact that most people like 
to wash their soiled linen in private. The first requisites of 
a good laundry are a plentiful supply of water, a healthy 



2i6 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

open situation and careful supervision against infection. The 
question of machinery should also be carefully considered, 
many people preferring the old-fashioned hand laundries on the 
plea that machinery weakens the material and tears the articles. 
Such great improvements have been made in this respect 
during the last few years that under a good manageress this 
danger may be disregarded. 

All clothes, whether washed at home or sent to the public 
laundry, should be plainly marked. When sent away from 
the house, the articles should be carefully marked, counted, 
and a list made for the laundress on Monday morning ; when 
the clothes are returned at the end of the week they should 
be recounted and aired before being put away. It is also 
advisable at the same time to look through articles that may 
require mending and a certain order should be observed in 
the putting away, that the same things may not be constantly 
in use. 

As we are not concerned here with the establishment 
of laundries on a large scale, it will be sufficient to point 
out what materials and utensils are required and how they 
should be applied and kept in good repair both at home and 
when furnishing a Laundry Centre for the use of Elementary 
Schools. 

The first requisite mentioned above, namely water, has 
been exhaustively treated in Chapter IV. ; it 

Water . . r :> 

IS essential for laundry purposes that this should 
be plentiful and as soft as possible. Clothes are frequently 
ruined by the use of soda and other matters employed to 
soften the water. 

The next requisite for washing is soap, a substance pro- 
duced by the action of an alkali on an oil. 

Soap. •' 

Vegetable as well as animal fats are employed 
in the manufacture. The alkali displaces glycerine from the 
oil and forms an alkaline stearate which is soap. The alkalies 
used are caustic alkalies, that is, alkalies in their pure state 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 217 

Soft soap is made of potash and coarser kinds of fats and oils, 
while the best hard soaps are made from animal fat and 
caustic soda ; the former is not used for washing the skin as 
it is too irritating, but it is best for coarse greasy clothes. 
The melted fat, soda and resin (the latter added to give bulk) 
are boiled together for some hours, then, on the addition of 
salt, the soap will rise to the surface, leaving glycerine behind. 
This process is repeated several times and towards the end 
water and special ingredients are added. A good soap should 
not contain too much alkali or it will injure the fabric of the 
clothes and also cause irritation to the skin. Too much fat 
will cause the soap to become rancid and too much water will 
cause great waste. Marine soap is made with cocoa-nut oil, 
because, unlike other kinds of fats, it is not rendered insoluble 
by brine and will form a lather with sea water. The use of 
hard water wastes large quantities of soap, as a lather is not 
produced until the lime salts have been neutralized by the 
quantity of soap used. 

There are three alkalies used in washing. Soda, potash 
and ammonia, sometimes known respectively as 

. . ■' . Alkalies. 

the mineral, vegetable and volatile alkalies. 
Their chief properties are to act as detergents or cleansers 
and to neutralize fatty acids. Used alone they destroy fabrics 
and turn white clothes yellow. 

Soda is manufactured now from common salt (chloride 
of sodium) ; it was formerly obtained from the 
ashes of seaweed. It should always be dissolved 
in hot water before being brought in contact with the clothes 
or iron-mould stains may be caused. 

Potash is obtained from the ashes of plants and vegetables 
and is known to the housekeeper under the 

- - , ^ Potash. 

name 01 pearlash. 

Ammonia is chiefly obtained during the distillation of 
coal in the manufacture of coal ras ; it is colour- 

•^ Ammonia. 

less, very volatile and has a pungent odour. It 



2i8 Domestic Economy. [PT. il. 

is used for washing Jaegar and natural wool garments, the 
proportions will be given in the part treating of washing 
of woollen garments. 

Borax, a saline substance found in its crude state in many 
of the salt lakes of North and South America 

Borax. 

and Asia, has a powerful effect ui softenmg 
water, but is too expensive to be used in large quantities. It 
loosens dirt and dissolves fats and starches very readily without 
injuring the fabric as soda does, and it is used in removing 
simple stains and in the preparation of both cold and hot 
starch. Borax is also produced by artificial means. 

Blues are divided into three kinds, Indigo, Prussian blue 

and Ultramarine : they are sold in two forms, 

Blue. . . . ^ . 

liquid and solid, the latter is the one in general 
use. The cake or ball of blue should be tied in a flannel 
and then dissolved in the water by crushing it with the fingers ; 
when sufficiently coloured the water should be sky-blue when 
held in the palm of the hand. It is used to give the clothes 
a good colour, and to prevent a streaky appearance ; the 
garment should have been thoroughly rinsed and be free from 
any remains of soap. 

Starch is used (i) for stiffening clothes, (2) to give them 
a good appearance, (3) to keep them clean 
longer. In its raw state it is a white glistening 
powder found in all cereals, but the best for laundry purposes 
is obtained from rice, the grains are finer and penetrate 
the linen more easily. Starch for stiffening clothes is made 
in two ways, hot starch for prints and muslins, cold starch 
for collars, cuffs and shirt fronts. 

Recipe for hot starch, i table-spoonful white starch, suf- 
ficient cold water to mix to a cream, h tea- 
Hot starch. . . " 

spoonful of borax dissolved in hot water, a 
piece of wax or candle about the size of a sixpence. Boiling 
water is then poured on these ingredients until the starch 
thickens and becomes a semi-transparent jelly. If it is too 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 219 

thick, for example for table linen, it may be diluted with cold 
water directly it is made. The borax is added to give a gloss 
and to whiten and stiffen the linen ; the wax or candle will 
keep the iron from sticking. All articles stiffened in hot 
starch should be dried before they are sprinkled and ironed. 

Recipe fo?- cold starcJi. i table-spoonful white starch, 
I breakfast-cupful of cold water, ^ tea-spoonful 

. ^ 1 Cold starch. 

of borax dissolved in hot water, J tea-spoonful 
of turpentine. The latter takes the place of wax or candle 
used in making hot starch, and for the same reason. These 
ingredients when thoroughly mixed should be strained through 
a piece of muslin. Cold starch is used for articles requiring 
to be made very stiff. They should be thoroughly dry before 
being starched or they will not be of the required stiffness. 
Collars and cuffs should be placed in the starch and then 
rubbed together with the hands; this ensures the starch getting 
into the linen. Each article should be squeezed dry and placed 
separately on a clean cloth ; the cloth should then be rolled up 
very tightly and left to stand for about an hour. 

Washing powders are best avoided in a laundry as 
they may contain chemicals which injure the 
clothes. As a rule they are composed of soda, po^ders*"^ 
borax, with the addition of lime, and if used at 
all, should be dissolved before they are brought in contact 
with the clothes. 

This dissolved soap is prepared by shredding up soap into 
small pieces and dissolving it either by pouring 

k T . •. /I IK .11 Soap Jelly. 

boiling water over it (4 lb. soap to i gallon 
of water) or by placing the soap in a saucepan of cold water 
and allowing it to melt on the fire. This jelly is added to 
the water in which flannels or woollens of any kind and prints 
are washed. Enough should be used to raise a lather by 
moving the hand about in the water. 

Paraffin washing, as it is called, saves time and labour, 
but cannot be carried out in ordinary households. Half a 



220 Domestic Economy, [PT. II. 

pound of soap should be dissolved in a boiler three parts full 
_ of water, and when it is boilina; 2 table-spoonfuls 

Paraffin. ' . 11 

of paraffin oil are added. The clothes are then 
put in dry and allowed to boil quickly for half-an-hour, any 
scum being carefully removed. The clothes should then be 
thoroughly rinsed in several warm soapy waters and finished 
with the ordinary rinsing and blueing, and dried in the ope?i air. 
The disadvantages of this method are the frequent rinsings, 
the danger of the oil catching fire and the difficulty of getting 
rid of the smell in large thick articles. 

Salts of lemon and oxalic acid are sometimes used to 
remove stains, but should always be labelled 
Poison and kept in a safe place. They are likely 
to injure the fabric, and after their application the material 
should always be well washed to prevent it from rotting. Stains 
if dealt with before they are dry can be removed without the 
aid of chemicals ; they will be dealt with in detail in the part 
relating to practical washing. 

This is not the place to touch on machinery worked by 
,, , . steam, etc., but many excellent washing machines 

Machinery. . 

may be obtained that can be used by hand and 
which will greatly save time and labour. 

A good hand- washing machine costs about ;£io, and 
will wash any kind of clothes. In using the one shown in 
the diagram, the clothes should be sorted and the white 
garments put in first and warm water poured in by means 
of the tap. When this has been let out, hot water is added 
and dissolved soap ; enough of the latter is put in to make a 
good lather. The machine is then turned continually for about 
20 minutes, and if the clothes are very dirty, fresh water and 
soap are added, if not they are rinsed until the water comes 
out quite clean. Where steam is used, this is turned on to 
boil them. The clothes are then blued ; liquid blue should 
be used, not too strong, they are turned about in this for 
about 10 minutes. If the clothes are to be starched, it is 



CHAP. X.] 



Housewifery. 



221 



put in by the bucketful (4 lbs. starch and 2 candles will 
make 4 bucketsful). The clothes are then taken out and put 
through a wringer. 




Diagram of Washing Machine. 



A. Clothes put in here. 

C. D. Hot and cold taps. 



B. Waste pipe. 
E. ClosinsT lid. 



In a small laundry, dolly tubs are used, price about 
^i. IS. od. : they are not suitable for very fine clothes ; 
washing boards cost about 12s. Then there are starching 
machines in shape like a box or tub. The collars and cuffs 
are put in and the machine turned round for 15 minutes, 
this beats the starch well into them. Ironing machines turned 
by hand for body or table linen can also be obtained and 
goffering machines heated by gas. 



222 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

Besides the machines mentioned above there are various 
utensils required in the laundry. If not fitted 

Care and . . . 

choice of with troughs, It should be furnished with wooden 

utensils. \.\}}o<s> for washiiig ; when these are not in use 

they should be kept in a cool dry place filled with clean 
water to prevent the wood from shrinking and the tub from 
leaking. The rollers of the mangle or wringer should always 
be wiped dry after use, the bearings loosened and oiled from 
time to time, the whole kept covered up and free from dust 
when not in use. 

The irons in general use are known as flat irons, they 
require cleaning on finely powdered bath-brick when they 
are taken off the stove or fire. They are sold in all sizes, 
but the best medium size is no. 5. Box irons have the 
advantage of being always clean, but they are heavy and 
cumbersome, at least two heaters should be allowed to each 
iron. Gas irons have much to recommend them, but they 
must be connected to the pipe by a piece of tubing and can 
only travel a certain distance, also special arrangements have 
to be made for ventilation. Charcoal is used for heating 
irons, chiefly in France, it saves much time and labour, but 
the fumes are unhealthy. Goffering irons somewhat resemble 
a pair of scissors and vary in size according to the " flute " 
required. When not in use, irons must be well greased, 
mutton fat is the best, and wrapped up in brown paper. The 
ironing stove in the shape of a pagoda is the most useful 
kind, and it is made to hold any number of flat irons and 
has a special arrangement on the top to hold goffering and 
polishing irons. These stoves are lighted in the usual way 
and the fire is kept up by adding coke. Iron stands are best 
made in tin or earthenware, and an iron holder should be 
oval in shape and of several thicknesses, an old stocking 
folded several times, covered by an old glove and sewn into 
a print cover, makes the most economical and substantial 
holder. Felting or baize should be bought for covering the 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 223 

ironing table and should be exactly the right size with no 
join ; old blankets and shawls may also be used. The sheets 
can be made of calico and should be furnished with tapes 
to tie them securely over the felt to the legs of the ironing 
table. Steam may be prevented from filling the laundry by 
fixing a copper hood to the boiler, the steam is carried off 
by these means into the flue, and when the lid is on none 
can escape into the room. If the floor is tiled and likely 
to get wet, boards raised about 2 to 4 inches from the ground 
should be provided to stand upon. 

Having briefly touched on some of the principal materials 
and utensils required in Laundry Work, it is 
necessary to say something of the order in vvaJhfn"^ 
which the work should be taken. Upon the 
day before the actual day set apart for washing, the clothes 
should be sorted ready for steeping in cold water. 

1. Fine things such as muslins, laces, collars and cuffs. 

2. Table linen. 

3. Bed and body linen. 

4. Coarse things. 

5. Prints and flannels. These are never soaked. 

Each of these sets is put in a separate tub and a little 
dissolved soda or borax may be added to the cold water ; 
very dirty parts may be soaped. On the actual washing day 
the flannels and woollen garments should be taken first, and 
as they are often spoilt in the process of cleaning, it is well 
to go into detail. 

For ordinary woollens two tubs should be filled with luke- 
warm water (2 parts cold to i part boiling). Soap jelly 
should be added until a good lather is formed. 

The flannels should be well shaken, then kneaded and 
squeezed in the lukewarm soapy lather first on the right side 
and then on the wrong. When clean, white flannels may be 
rinsed in clean warm water to which a little ammonia has 



224 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

been added. For coloured flannels, salt may be added to 
the water to prevent the colour from running. They may 
then be squeezed or put carefully through the wringer and 
well shaken to raise the "nap" and dried fairly quickly 
before the fire or in the open air; on no account must the 
fire be too fierce or the sun too hot. Knitted or crochet 
garments should be pinned out while still wet. Flannels may 
be ironed with a cool iron. To prevent shrinking, before 
garments are made up, it is a good thing to soak new flannel 
in cold water for 12 hours and then wash as above. Flannel 
with little holes at intervals along the selvedge has been well 
stretched in the manufacture and will shrink a great deal the 
first time it is washed. Blankets should be washed on a day 
when they can dry out of doors. They should be washed 
in two lathers of warm soapy water to which a table-spoonful 
of dissolved borax has been added, then rinsed in a large tub 
of warm water slightly blued. The blankets should be wrung 
as dry as possible, then well shaken to raise the nap. The 
surface will be much improved by being shaken twice or more 
during the process of drying. 

The things which have been put to soak should be rubbed 
and wrung out of the steeping water and then 

clothes^ taken in order, that is to say, the cleanest and 
finest articles should be taken first, and the 
water should be as hot as the hand will bear. Muslins and 
laces require special treatment, and coloured prints should 
be washed in the same way as flannels and stiffened with 
hot starch. After washing, white clothes should be boiled 
from 15 to 20 minutes to keep them a good colour, the water 
should be soft and soapy and it is generally necessary to put 
the articles in a bag to prevent the scum from settling on 
them. After thorough rinsing, all clothes not required very 
stiff may be starched in hot water starch, thick or thin as 
required, and put to dry in the open air if possible; this 
not only improves the colour of the clothing, but also makes 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 225 

them fresh and clean. Failing an out-of-doors drying ground, 
a clothes-horse near the fire may be used, or a bar of wood 
fastened by means of ropes and pulleys to the ceiling. The 
latter is an excellent method either for drying or airing, and 
can be easily fixed if the room be lofty enough. Clothes 
require to be carefully folded before being damped and 
mangled ; it is owing to want of attention to this part of the 
cleaning process that so many garments are pulled out of 
shape and buttons broken off. The clothes should be folded 
in long strips with the buttons and tapes laid flat within the 
folds of the garments, and the folds should be of equal thick- 
ness so that the pressure of the mangle may be equal in every 
part. 

When collars and cuffs or shirt fronts have been ironed, 
a hot polishing iron may be used to gloss them. 
The collar or front should be placed on a hard Li^en^^^"^ 
board and the starched surface rubbed with a 
lightly damped piece of clean flannel or linen. The hot 
polishing iron is then rubbed quickly backwards and forwards 
until a gloss is produced. 

Silk should be washed in warm soap lather as quickly as 
possible, and if white, rinsed in clean cold 
water, or in vinegar and water if the silk be 
coloured. It should be ironed while still wet by placing a 
piece of cambric over it and using a moderately hot iron. 
Silks are sometimes dipped in gum water before ironing, this 
gives a slight stiffness and gloss. The proportions are i oz. 
of gum arable to i pint of boiling water, strained through 
muslin and used as follows : i dessert spoonful to a cup of 
water. 

Lace may be treated in various ways. If very fine a glass 
bottle should be covered with folds of flannel 
and the lace sewn on round. The bottle is 
dipped into a warm soapy lather and pressed until clean ; 
it should be rinsed in clean water. Fine laces should not 

B. 15 



226 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

be ironed, but pinned out on a board covered with flannel or 
pulled into shape, placed between folds of blotting-paper and 
pressed. Another way is to fill a bottle with warm soap 
lather and shake the lace up and down in it until clean. 
It may be stiffened by dissolving 2 oz. of lump sugar in 
I pint of boiling water or by using gum water in the same way 
as for silk. Coarse laces may be starched in ordinary hot water 
starch and ironed. 

Art work and cretonnes should be washed in bran water, 
_ , . this not only cleanses them but gives them a 

Bran washing. . . ^ ° 

slight Stiffness. 
To make bran w^ater, boil 2 handfuls or i quart of 
bran in 4 quarts of water for an hour. The mixture is 
then strained through a piece of muslin and enough cold 
water added to make the whole mixture lukewarm. Soap 
jelly may then be added and the material kneaded and 
squeezed in the water, each piece being washed separately 
and finished off as soon as possible; the colours will run if 
they are allowed to soak. To set the colours the w^ork may 
be rinsed in a strong solution of salt and water. Cretonne 
curtains and covers may require to be starched in thin boiling 
water starch and they should be ironed when partly dry 
with a cool iron on the wrong side. If they are ironed on 
the right side a piece of cambric or muslin should be placed 
between them and the iron. 

Stains in most cases are easily removed if attended to 
„ . while still fresh, if allowed to dry, chemicals must 

Stains. ' . . . ^ 

be used and the fabric is likely to be injured. 
It is necessary before removing stains to consider first their 
nature, and secondly the material from which the stain has 
to be removed. 

Table linen is the most subject to stain, either fruit, wine, 
or tea and coffee stains. 

To remove the former, stretch the stained portion of the 
material over a basin, rub with common salt and pour on 



CHAP. X.] Housewifery. 227 

boiling water, and repeat the process until the stain disappears. 
If the stain is dry, salts of lemon must be used in the same 
way, but unless the material is washed and rinsed immediately 
afterwards, it will rot. Tea and coffee stains should be re- 
moved at once by soaking in cold w^ater, borax and boiling 
water may then be used and the cloth dried in the open air ; 
no soap should be used, as this fixes the stain. 

Ink stains if wet may be removed by being rubbed with 
powdered starch and afterwards moistened in milk or by 
being soaked in boiled milk. Dry ink stains can only be 
removed by having recourse to salts of lemon or oxalic acid. 
Lemon juice may be used, and turpentine often proves useful 
in removing ink stains from white muslin. 

Grease stains on cloth material should be removed with 
powdered French chalk. The chalk is rubbed on the stain 
which is held over a hot iron ; as the heat meets the grease, 
it is absorbed by the chalk which can be rubbed off with a 
dry rag. Benzine is also very useful but should not be used 
near a fire as it is very inflammable. 

Paint stains may be removed by the application of spirit 
of turpentine or spirits of wine. Mildew is very difficult to 
get rid of, but repeated applications of chalk and salt, and 
moistening with water followed by drying in the sun will 
sometimes remove it. 

The clothing of a person suffering from any infectious 
disease should be completely separated and Disinfecting 
never washed with the ordinary clothes of the 
household. Heat is one of the most reliable processes of 
disinfection and may be applied either in a dry form such as 
baking, or by wet heat as in steaming or boiling. 

For baking clothes a special apparatus is required and 
the local sanitary authorities will carry out the necessary 
process. Clothes may be disinfected by boiling them for 
half-an-hour. It is difiicult to use any strong disinfectant 
such as chloride of lime or carbolic acid without staining the 

15-2 



228 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

clothes, and it is always necessary to distinguish between 
disinfectants proper, which should destroy micro-organisms, 
and deodorizers, which simply get rid of bad smells. In cases 
of small-pox, scarlet-fever, diphtheria, etc. the proper autho- 
rities should at once be communicated with, as clothing, 
unless properly treated, forms one of the chief means of 
spreading infection. It is now compulsory for the head of 
the household to notify the medical officer of health as soon 
as a case of infectious disease has occurred under his roof; 
neglect of this renders him Hable to a penalty of ;^io. 



CHAP. XL] 229 



CHAPTER XL 
Foods. 

I. Animal Food : — meat. 

§ 82. The term Food may be strictly defined, as the 
material taken to repair the substance of the body. 

The Proximate Principles of which Food is composed may 
be classified as 

Nitrogenous Foods, example, Proteids ; 

Non-Nitrogenous Foods, such as Fats, Starches, Sugar ; 

Mineral Salts ajid water. 

All Proteids contain Nitrogen as well as Carbon, Oxygen 
and Hydrogen, and this Class of Food may be found in the 
Vegetable as well as in the Animal Kingdom. 

The most important Animal Foods are Meat, Fish, Game, 
Poultry, and the Proteids derived from them are said to be 
more readily digested than those obtained from Vegetables. 

Meat may be divided into 

{a) Red Meat, such as Beef and Mutton. 

(J)) White Meat, as Veal and Pork. 

The latter are the least digestible, taking four and five 
hours respectively, while beef and mutton each take three 
to digest; much however depends on the manner in which 
they are prepared by cooking. 



230 



Domestic Economy. 



[PT. II. 



Animal Flesh consists of 72 •'/o of Water, about 20^0 of 
Proteids, and a varying amount of Fat\ 

Good Meat should be bright red in colour, leave no mark 
when pressed, be free from smell, and marbled in appearance 
from the fat between the muscle fibres. 

To be tender, meat should hang for two or three days ; 
the time varies according to the climate or time of year. 
Immediately after death, a stiffening of the muscles takes 
place, rigor mortis. This lasts about two days, after which the 
meat becomes tender and is better flavoured. This condition 
lasts a very short time, putrefaction setting in. 

Beef is best obtained from an ox about four years old : the 
flesh should be bright red, firm, free from smell, and the fat 
white and firm. 

Cow-beef is more closely grained and the lean of a deeper 
red. 

Bull- beef is dark in colour and has a strong smell. 

Average beef contains about 

Water Proteids Fat 

5476 16-93 27-33. 

The manner of cutting up an ox varies in different parts of 
the country; but the following are the different joints and the 
average price : 



Rump, from lod. to t/- a lb. 
Buttock or round, from '^d. a lb. 
Aitchbone, from 7^. a lb. 
Sirloin, from 10^/. a lb. 
Ribs, from lod. a lb. 

a. Fore Ribs. 

b. Middle Ribs. 

c. Chuck Ribs. 
Neck and Clod. 
Heart, from 8^. 



Palate. 

Skin, from 4^/. a lb. 

Shoulder, or Leg of Mutton piece. 

Brisket, from 7^. a lb. 

Flank. 

Cheeks, about 2/-. 

Tail, from 1/6. 

Tongue, from 2/6. 

Liver, 8^/. a lb. 



^ The Food-values are taken from Prof. Knight's book, Food and its 
Functions. 



CHAP. XI.] 



Foods. 



231 




Division of the Ox. 

Leg of Beef — used for beef-tea and soups. 2. Buttock or Round — 

may be divided into Top Side and Silver Side. 3. Aitch-bone. 

4. Rump. 5. Sirloin — cut into 3 parts, a chump end, a middle 

and a wing end. 6. Fore Ribs. 7. Middle Ribs. 8. Chuck 
of Beef. 9. Clod — used for stewing. 10. Neck or Sticking 

piece. II. Shin. 12. Brisket. 13. Thin Flank. 



14. Thick Flank. 



^0- 



Tail. 



N.B. Beef Kidney is used for puddings and pies — Suet for pastry and 
force-meat — Tongue for pickling and boiling. 

Tripe is the inner lining of the stomach of the cow or ox : 
there are five kinds but the two generally eaten are known as 
the Double and Honeycomb. 

Tripe is very nourishing and easy of digestion. 

When bought at Tripe Shops it is usually dressed and only 
requires re-cooking. 

When bought raw it must be soaked in salt and water, 
scraped, blanched and boiled ; it costs from dd. to ^d, a lb. 



232 



Domestic Economy 



[PT. II. 



Mutton. Home-grown mutton is best from a sheep about 
three to four years old. 

In appearance the meat should be fine grained, the lean 
bright-coloured and firm, and the fat very white and hard. 

Welsh and Scotch mutton is smaller than ordinary mutton, 
but has a fine flavour : the legs only weigh 6 lbs. or even less 
shoulders from 3 to 5 lbs. 

It contains : 

Water Proteids Fat 

75-99 i8-ii 577. 




Division of the Sheep. 

I. Leg. 2. Shoulder. 3. Neck: a. Scrag end; b. Best end. 

4. Loin : a. Chump end. 5. Breast. 

The following table gives the chief joints, with the average 
prices : 



Leg (2), <^d. to \\d. a lb. 
Shoulder (2), M. to f^d. a lb. 
Loin, from \od. a lb. 
Saddle, from ^d. to i/- a lb. 
Breast, from dd. a lb. 
Neck : 

1. Best end, from ()d. a lb. 

2. Scrag end, from 7^. a lb. 



Head, from dd. 
Tongue. 
Suet, dd. a lb. 
Kidneys, -i^d. each. 
Heart, from 6d. 



CHAP. XI.] 



Foods. 



233 



Welsh and Scotch mutton vary in price, some of the best 
parts fetching \s. 2d. a lb. 

Mutton-suet is cheaper than Beef-suet and less digestible 
on account of the Stearin it contains— it is much whiter and 
harder in appearance. 

Pork. Fresh pork is obtained from a pig under one year 
old, and to be delicate it must be small and not too fat. 



Composition : 

Water 
47-40 



Proteids 
i4'54 



Fat 
37'34- 



The fat should be very white, the lean pink and free from 
spots, and the skin thin. 

The pig is very liable to disease, being an omnivorous 
feeder, and the flesh should be carefully chosen and thoroughly 
cooked. 

Dairy-fed pork is the most wholesome, and it is always best 
to buy from a farm or from a reliable dealer. 




Pig- Pork. 



I. The Spare Rib and Neck. 2. Hand. 

4. Fore Loin. 5. Hind Loin. 



3. Belly or Spring. 
6. Leg (Ham). 



234 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

A Porker^ i.e. a pig to be used as fresh meat, is divided as 
follows : 



Leg (2), 6d. to 8^. a lb. 

Loin (including fore loin and hind 

loin), Sfl'. a lb. 
Spare rib, (\d. to 8^'. a lb. 
Belly or Spring, about 6</. a lb. 
Head or Cheek, about dd. a lb. 
Hand, about dd. a lb. 



Fry— internal parts — including 
Heart 

c lu J /" ^d. a lb. 
Sweetbread 

Chitterlings 

Feet or Pettitoes, \d. to id. each. 



The internal fat is melted down and known as Lard, 
price Zd. a lb. 

A bacon pig is older than a Porker and is divided dif- 
ferently : 

Legs (2) — Hams, 

Sides (2) — Flitch of bacon proper. 

Shoulders (2), 

Head, 

Chine : about dd. a lb. 

There are two kinds of bacon, smoked and unsmoked ; the 
latter is often known as ^^ green bacon " and costs from dd. to 
7^. a lb. 

The best home-cured Wiltshire comes to ^d. or \od. a lb. 

Bacon and hams may be prepared in two different ways ; by 
dry or wet pickling. 

When meat is salted dry it has a better flavour, but it loses 
in weight. 

In the wet process meat gains in weight, and is said to 
keep longer. 

Meat for salting must be fresh. 

Sugar, used in pickle, is a powerful antiseptic and gives 
mellowness to the meat. 

Saltpetre gives it a red colour, but should not be used in 
large quantities as it tends to harden. 

Pickle should always be deep enough to cover the meat, 
and be placed in an earthenware pan with a tightly-fitting lid. 



CHAP. XL] 



Foods. 



235 



Veal and Lamb. 

Veal obtained from the calf, and Lamb taken from the 
young sheep, are both taken from immature animals and their 
flesh contains a large proportion of water. 

They are less wholesome and digestible than beef and 
mutton, and should be thoroughly well-cooked. 

In choosing Veal the flesh should be of a fresh pink, fine 
grained and plump, the fat white. 




I. Loin, Best end. 

4. Hind Knuckle. ■ 

7. Neck, Scrag end. 
10. Breast, Brisket end. 



Calf — Veal. 

1. Loin, Chump end, 3. Fillet. 

:;. Fore Knuckle. 6. Neck, Best end. 

8. Blade Bone. 9. Breast, Best end. 



236 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

Veal will not bear hanging, and should not be kept more 
than a day or two, especially in hot weather. 

There are two so-called Sweetbreads : one from the throat, 
the other called the heart sweetbread ; the latter is larger and 
the one most generally used. 

Veal contains : 

Water Proteids Fat 

78-82 1976 0-82. 

It is divided into the following joints : 

Breast, '^d. a lb. 



Head, from 3/-. 

Loin, fi-om lod. a lb. 

Chump. 

Fillet, 9^. to i/- a lb. 

Hind Knuckle, 7^. a lb. 

Fore Knuckle, id. z. lb. 

Neck, 7^. to 9^. a lb. 



Feet, \d. to 5^. each. 
Pluck, including: 
Heart, \od. 

Light's, l^"'-'''^''- 
Sweetbread, from 2/6 each to 5/-. 



Lamb. Lamb is to be had from Christmas, when it is 
called House Lamb, and is considered a great delicacy. 

Grass Lamb comes into season in March. 

Like all other meat obtained from young animals it should 
be thoroughly cooked. 

The flesh should be clear and firm, the fat delicately white 
and hard. 

When quite young, lamb is divided into quarters ; and the 
fore-quarter, consisting of shoulder, breast and neck, is con- 
sidered the best. 



Later on the quarters are divided into joints : 

Breast, 8^. to gd. a lb. 
Fore-quarter, gd. to 1/2 a lb. 
Hind-quarter, from iid. a lb. 
Leg, lid. to i/- a lb. 
Shoulder, gd. a lb. 



Lamb's Fry includes 
Heart, 

Sweetbreads, 
Liver, 
Kidneys, 
Milt. 



Foreign Meat. A large quantity of foreign meat is im- 
ported to England and sold at a lower price than home-grown 
and home-killed meat. 



CHAP. XL] Foods. 237 

There is 

1. Frozen Meat. 

This is meat killed in the United States, Australia and 
New Zealand, and frozen before rigor mortis has set in. 

This kind of meat requires very thorough thawing before it 
is cooked, and this should not be done before a fire, but by 
leaving it to hang in a kitchen or larder of ordinary temper- 
ature. When quite thawed it is ready for use, and, as a rule, 
will not bear keeping much longer. 

2. Animals exported alive and slaughtered after arrival in 
England. 

The flesh is exposed to a low temperature without being 
actually frozen, and is then sent in specially constructed vans 
to various parts of the country. 

Tinned Meat. Tinned meats are now consumed every- 
where in large quantities and, if carefully used and chosen, are 
wholesome and cheap. 

Directly a tin is opened the contents should at once be 
emptied into a basin. 

Tins that have been standing in shop windows and exposed 
to sun-light should not be bought, nor those that bulge out- 
wards; the latter shows that the air has not been fully expelled. 

Tins should bear the name of a well-known firm and, if 
stored at home, should be kept in a dark, cool, dry place. 

II. Poultry. 

§ 83. Poidtry includes all domestic birds such as Turkeys, 
Fowls, Geese and Ducks. 

In choosing Poultry it is necessary to take age, freshness, 
condition and colour into consideration. 

In young birds the end of the breast-bone will be gristle 
and bend easily, the legs and feet are smooth, and in male 
birds the spurs are only represented by scaly knobs. 



238 Domestic Economy. [pt. II. 

When fresh and in good condition the skin looks clear and 
unwrinkled, and the flesh is plump and firm. 

White-legged fowls are best for boiling, while dark-legged 
fowls may be used for roasting ; but this is entirely a matter of 
taste. 

Being deficient in fat chickens are served with bread-sauce 
and bacon. 

They are dear in the spring and cheaper towards the end 
of the year, average price from 2s. 6d. to 3^-. 6d. 

Ducks should be chosen by the softness and elasticity of 
the feet and the rounded contour of the breast. 

They may hang for a few days before cooking, weather 
permitting. They are less digestible than fowls on account of 
the fat they contain and the strong flavour of the flesh. Apple 
or gooseberry sauce, and sage and onion stuffing are served 
with duck to correct the richness of the dish. 

Dticklifigs are in season in May and June. 

Geese should have yellow pliable feet, and white skin ; like 
ducks they are better hung for a few days. They are in 
season in September, cost 5/- to 10/-. 

Turkeys are at their best in December and January. They 
should hang for a week before being dressed. Hen turkeys, 
which are considered the best, cost from i/- a lb. 

Guinea-Fowls are often used when game is out of season. 
They are very dry birds and should be larded with fat bacon 
before cooking and carefully basted, cost from 35'. dd. 

Rabbits are in season from August to April. Wild ones 
are best for the table and should be cooked while fresh. In 
young rabbits the claws are sharp and the ear tears easily ; in 
old ones the teeth are very long and yellow, cost Zd. to 
\s. <)d. each. 



CHAP. XI.] Foods. 239 

Pigeons^ 9^. to 1/- each. Young ones should be chosen 
and the age can be tested by the wings which will not be fully 
fledged inside, the feet should be smooth and the beak soft. 
They should be drawn as soon as they are killed. 

Game includes all wild animals hunted by sportsmen and 
protected by law. 

To attain perfection game must hang for some days; the 
length of time depending on the weather, the kind of larder, 
the way the bird has been killed. 

A pheasant will sometimes hang as long as 20 days, but 
should be carefully watched. 

To judge the condition of game, notice whether the eye is 
much sunk. If almost invisible the bird has probably been 
killed several days. This year's birds may be known by the 
smoothness of the legs and the softness of the beak. 

/;/ season. Price. 

Grouse, 12th August to December loth. 5/- to 6/- a brace. 

Hares, October to March. ^\^ to 6/- each. 

Partridges, ist September to March 12th. 3/- a brace. 

Pheasants, October to March r2th. 6/- a brace. 

Plovers, August to March 15th. i\(i each. 

Ptarmigan, November to March. from 1/6 each. 

Quails, March to July. i/- eacli. 

Snipe, October to March rsth, 2/6 a brace. 

Teal, September to February. 1/6 each. 

Wild Duck, October to December. ■2/- each. 

Woodcock, December to March. 5/- a brace. 

Venison^ the flesh of the deer, is a savoury food, short in 
fibre, containing Httle fat, but when young very tender and 
rich in albumen. 

Buck-venison, which is considered the best, is in season 
from June to September; Doe-venison from October to 
December. 

The haunch is the prime joint, cost variable. 



240 Domestic Economy. [pt. ii. 



III. Fish. 

§ 84. Fish forms a valuable article of diet when carefully 
chosen and well-cooked. 

It contains a large proportion of water, a varying amount of 
fat and proteids ; it is also rich in gelatine. 

As in the case of all animals, fish, when eaten, should be 
fresh. 

A fresh fish should have bright eyes, red gills, plump, firm 
flesh, straight, stiff tail and be free from all smell. 

Mackerel and herrings keep a very short time ; cod, turbot, 
haddock and whiting keep best when stored in a cool place. 

During spawning fish is said to be " out of season " and is 
then unfit for food. 

They are divided by the cook into three kinds : 

1. Oily Fish, i.e. fish containing oil distributed through- 
out the body ; examples : salmon, herring, mackerel, etc. 

2. White Fish, fish containing oil in the liver only ; such 
as whiting, sole, cod, etc. 

White fish are the most digestible because they contain 
less fat. 

3. She/ I- Fish : 

(a) Crustacea : Crabs, Lobsters, etc. 
{b) MoUusca : Oysters, Mussels, etc. 

Shell-fish are often foul feeders and are considered, with 
the exception of the oyster, very indigestible. They are best 
eaten unaccompanied by any liquid. 

Fish may also be divided into Salt and Fresh water Fish ; 
the close time for the latter is from March 15 th to June 15 th. 

One of the most usual methods of cooking fish is by 



CHAP. XI.] 



Foods. 



241 



boiling ; the general rule is to allow six minutes to the lb. and 
six minutes over, the water should just cover the fish and be 
only allowed to simmer. 

In frying fish care should be taken to make it as dry as 
possible, first by wiping and then by dusting over with flour. 

The roe in large fish is removed and cooked separately; 
that of the Sturgeon is known as Caviare. 



White Fish : 
Cod, 

Haddock, 
Plaice, 
Smelts, 
Sole, 
Turbot, 
Whitebait, 
Whiting, 

Oily Fish : 
Eels, 
Herring, 
Mackerel, 
Salmon, 

Shell-Fish : 
Lobster, 
Oyster, 
Prawns, 
Mussels, 



I/i season. 



Feb., Oct., Nov., Dec. 

Aug., Sep., Oct., Nov., Dec. 

Feb., March, April, Oct., Nov., Dec. 

Feb., March, April, Oct., Nov., Dec. 

Feb., June to Dec. 

Feb., March, April, Oct., Nov., Dec. 



Jan., 
Jan., 
Jan., 
Jan., 
Jan., 
Jan. , 
June. 
Jan. to April, Aug. to Dec 



Jan., Feb., June to Dec. 
May to Dec. 

Jan. to June, Oct. to Dec. 
Feb. to Sep. 

Feb. to Oct. 

Jan., Feb., March, April, Sep. to Dec. 

Feb. to Nov. 

Jan. to April, Sep. to Dec. 



IV. Milk. 



§ 85. Mi7k is generally called a complete or perfect food, 
because it contains all that is necessary for the support of the 
yoimg mammal. 

It is however too deficient in Carbo-hydrates to be a 
proper food for adults in health. 

The constituents of milk are in 100 parts : 

Water Proteids Lactose Fats Salts 
86 4 54 I. 

B. 16 



242 Domestic Economy. [PT. Ii. 

Milk contains these chemical substances as follows : 

Nitrogenous^ in the Casein — curd and albumen ; 
Carbo- Hydrates, in the Lactose or milk-sugar j 
Fats, in the cream ; 
Mineral Mattel's, in the whey, salts and water. 

After standing a short time milk turns sour, the milk-sugar 
having been changed into lactic acid owing to the presence of 
a micro-organism called Bacterimn ladis, which abounds in 
dairies and other places where milk is kept. It also readily 
absorbs disease, producing micro-organisms, and great care 
should be taken to keep everything about milk scrupulously 
clean. 

All pans and vessels should be scalded before use and care 
taken that the water used is fresh and pure, and in no way 
contaminated. 

Tuberculosis or " wasting decline " in cows affects the milk, 
and the disease may be conveyed to human beings. 

Scarlet fever, enteric fever and diphtheria, may also be 
propagated by this means. It is thus much safer and better to 
use boiled water and boiled milk, bacteria being effectually 
destroyed by exposure to a high temperature. 

Boiling milk gives it a somewhat disagreeable taste but, if 
it is placed in an airy place after boiling and the skin removed, 
it soon loses this flavour. 

Even when boiled, milk should be kept away from strongly 
smelling substances and protected from dust by being covered 
with a piece of clean muslin. 

The C7-eani which rises to the top of the milk after 
standing is composed of globules of fat ; being lighter it rises 
to the surface. 

Through the process known as churning, cream is con- 
verted into a solid substance called butter, the most wholesome 
and nourishing form of Fatty Food. 



CHAP. XI.] Foods. 243 

Devonshire or Clotted Cream is made from milk allowed to 
stand and then placed over gentle heat. When the milk has 
reached a certain temperature the cream clots and can then be 
taken off. 

Cream is often removed by means of a separator and the 
milk left behind is called skim-milk. It is very wholesome 
and nutritious, and can be obtained more cheaply than whole- 
milk. 

Btitter-milk is what is left when butter has been made and 
contains all the constituents of milk, even a small proportion 
of fat ; it is useful in cases of Catarrh of the stomach. 

Casein, which is one of the proteids contained in milk, is 
the chief constituent of Cheese. 

In making Cheese the new milk is placed in a vessel and 
warmed, and then a curdling ferment is introduced. Rennet 
is the one in general use and is obtained from the stomach of 
the calf. 

The curd thus produced is separated from the whey and 
pressed into moulds. 

It is known as 

Whole-milk Cheese, 
Skim-milk Cheese, 
Cream-Cheese. 

Also as "hard" or "soft" cheese. 

It is composed of almost equal parts of water, fat and 
casein, with salts, and is most nutritious. 

One lb. of cheese contains as much nourishment as two lbs. 
of meat, but unless eaten by persons engaged in hard, out of 
door work, is indigestible. 

Milk may be preserved in various ways, but should never 
be used when fresh milk can be obtained. 

16 — 2 



244 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

1. Condensed Milk, Condensed milk is prepared by the 
evaporation of the water and is kept in hermetically sealed 
tins. 

There are two kinds, sweetened and unsweetened : the 
latter should be used directly the tin is opened ; the former is 
very fattening on account of the quantity of sugar it contains. 

2. Chemicals may be added, boracic acid is one in 
general use. The use of boracic acid is now considered unsafe 
but has not yet been absolutely condemned. Cream to which 
chemicals have been added cannot be whipped. 

3. Milk may be desiccated after evaporation. 

4. It may be preserved by the application of 

ia) heat, as in boiling, or 
ip) cold, as in freezing. 

Cold does not destroy the disease-producing bacteria, heat 
does. 

The composition of milk varies in different animals. 

Mare's and ass's milk resemble human milk very closely, 
cow's milk is richer, except in sugar. 

The latter forms large clots of curd in the stomach and 
should be diluted by adding boiling water or barley water 
before being given to an infant. 

In using boiling water, dilute at first to three times its bulk 
and add a little sugar. 

Barley water contains so much mucilage that it prevents 
the casein from forming large hard clots and is also nourishing. 

It should be given to an infant in the proportion of one 
tablespoonful of milk to two of barley water. 

At six months old, the quantities should be half-and-half. 



CHAP. XL] Foods. 245 

EGGS. 

% 86. Next to milk, eggs form an important, perfect food, 
the young chicken being entirely developed out of the nutri- 
ment contained in the egg and shell. 

They are deficient in Carbo-hydrates and Salts, which are 
supplied when eggs are eaten with bread and butter and salt. 

An egg consists of: 

1. The Yolk, which is rich in fat and phosphates. 

2. The White, which consists chiefly of albumen and 
water enclosed in a delicate membrane. 

It is semi-transparent, liquid and glairy in a raw condition, 
but on being exposed to heat coagulates at a temperature of 
160° Fahrenheit. The white then becomes opaque, solid and 
smooth, and is much less digestible than in a raw condition. 

For boiling it is best to put eggs into cold water and bring 
them to the boil. 

The addition of alcohol has also the effect of coagulating 
albumen and making it into a hard, cheesy, indigestible mass. 

The practice of putting eggs into puddings to make them 
light is somewhat misleading, as the lightness is not due to 
the eggs, which harden in cooking, but to the whipping of 
the yolk and whites. In this process air is introduced and 
the albumen divided into fine particles, instead of being pre- 
sented in a mass. 

As the decomposition of eggs is due to the introduction of 
germs through the porous shell, they may be preserved : 

1. By smearing them over with some fatty substance to 
exclude the air. 

2. By keeping them in sawdust. 

3. By steeping them in a mixture of lime and water. 

4. By keeping them in brine. 



246 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

The freshness of an egg may be tested by holding it up to 
the light, when it should look clear. 

Another method is to make a solution of salt and water — 
I oz. common salt to \ pint water. — A good egg will sink in 
this mixture, while a bad egg will float on the top. 

The eggs in general use are hens' eggs, and the average 
weight is about 2 oz. 

Ducks' and turkeys' eggs are also used, and plovers' eggs 
are considered a great delicacy. 

The price of eggs varies with locality and season, the dearest 
time being during the autumn and winter months. 

The so-called " egg and custard powders " have no connec- 
tion with eggs proper; they only consist of baking powder 
and some form of starch coloured a pale yellow. This should 
be borne in mind when preparing food for invalids, as these 
powders, quite harmless in themselves, in no way replace the 
nutritive value of a hen's egg. 

VEGETABLES. 

§ 87. Vegetable Foods, which may be divided for 
convenience into Cereals, Roots and Tubers, Green 
Vegetables and Legumes, are too often, in England espe- 
cially, looked upon merely as accessories or Food Adjuncts. 

They contain the same proximate principles as are found 
in the animal kingdom, Proteids in the form of Legumin 
and Gluten, Carbo-hydrates in the Starch, Sugar and 
Cellulose, Mineral Matters in the Potash, Phosphates and 
water ; they are deficient in fat. 

It is gradually being recognized that vegetable foods, 
taken in proper proportion with cream, butter, cheese, eggs 
and milk, form a healthy, nourishing diet ; and, according to 
Dr Haig in Diet and Eood, " The Vegetarians of this country 
are pretty decidedly superior in endurance to those who feed 
on^animal tissues." 



CHAP. XI.] Foods. 247 

For economy's sake this may be pointed out with advantage 
to the working class, peas, haricot beans and lentils being 
highly nitrogenous, and their cost within the reach of all. 

Cereals occupy the most important part among the 
vegetable foods : wheat in Europe ; rice and maize in India, 
Africa, and America form the staple diet. 

Under the head of Cereals are included all corn-bearing 
plants in which the nitrogenous matters are present in the form 
of gluten found after the removal of the starch. 

The tenacity and adhesiveness of the gluten found in 
wheat and rye enables them to be made into bread. 

Wheat is an annual cereal grass, bearing grains in rows 
on an ear-stalk. 

The two kinds generally used are known as bearded or 
beardless, also red or white. 

The grain has two coats. The inner one is composed of 
bran-cells, underneath which are the gluten-cells. The centre 
of the grain is composed of starch-grains. 

In the process of grinding the bran is separated from the 
flour ; the latter is either white or yellowish-white, the former 
contains little except starch, and is far less nourishing than 
the flour known as "seconds." 

Whole-meal is a mixture of bran and flour, and is used in 
making brown bread. 

It retains all the nourishment of the grain, but is some- 
times diflicult to digest ; it is excellent in cases of consti- 
pation. 

Preparations of wheat containing a large proportion of 
gluten are much used as foods; the best known are Semo- 
lina, Macaroni and Vermicelli. 

Their nutritive value is greater than that of bread. 

Rye is little used in England, but in Germany and Russia 
it is made into " black bread," a heavy, sourish, indigestible 
compound. 



248 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

A mixture of wheat-flour and rye makes a good bread. 

Oats form a very important class of cereals containing an 
abundance of proteids as well as fats and salts. 

The nitrogenous principles of oats have no adhesiveness, 
therefore cannot be made into bread. 

Groats are the grains freed from husks, and in a crushed 
form are sold as Quaker Oats, etc. for porridge and gruel. 

Oatmeal in water forms a refreshing drink in hot weather, 
and oatmeal jelly is valuable for invalids suffering from stomach 
troubles. 

Barley resembles wheat, but the proteids, like those of 
oats, do not form gluten with the addition of water. 

When husked and ground, barley is known as pearl-barley. 
(For the conversion of barley into malt, see Beer.) 

Barley-water is most useful for invalids and babies, and 
may be flavoured with lemon or mixed with milk. 

In preparing barley-water for infants, the barley should 
first be blanched — i.e. put on in cold water and brought to 
the boil — then put on to boil in the proportion of i oz. pearl- 
barley to I pint of water. It should boil until reduced to half 
a pint and then be strained. Thin barley-water makes a re- 
freshing, wholesome drink. 

Blanch i oz. pearl-barley in one pint of water. Strain and 
place at the bottom of a jug with sugar and lemon rind, then 
pour over i pint of boiling water, cover and strain when cold. 

Maize or Indian Corn contains Httle proteid matter, 
but has the most fat next to Oatmeal. In America it is used 
when green as a vegetable. The best known preparations of 
maize are, Hominy, Oswego flour, and Cornflour. 

Rice consists chiefly of starch and should always be 
eaten with other foods rich in proteids. 

The two kinds of Rice in general use are Patna and 



CHAP. XL] Foods. 249 

Carolina. The former is a long, white-pointed grain, and is 
used for curries or when the rice is required to be served dry. 

Carolina Rice is larger, absorbs liquid more readily, and is 
made into puddings, etc. 

In cooking, rice should be steamed, not boiled, as a large 
quantity of the nutriment is carried off in the water. 

Roots and Tubers. 

This division of the vegetable foods is composed almost 
entirely of starch and water and salts ; the best known are the 
Potato and the Jerusalem Artichoke. 

They are deficient in proteids and fat. 

Potatoes consist of 95 7o <^f starch and water, and are 
too poor in proteid matters to support life unless the defi- 
ciency is supplied, but with the addition of butter, cheese, 
butter-milk, etc. may form a wholesome, palatable food, the 
staple diet in some parts of Ireland. 

Old potatoes, on being boiled, should present a floury 
appearance ; this is due to the bursting of the starch-grains. 
Young potatoes contain immature starch-cells, and when boiled 
look waxy and are indigestible and unwholesome. The pro- 
cess of steaming retains the salts, which are otherwise lost in 
the water; another way is to cook potatoes in their "jackets." 

Jerusalem Artichokes are tubers of the sunflower 
family. They contain no starch and do not become floury 
when boiled. They are in season during the winter months. 

Sweet Potato. The difference between it and the true 
potato is the presence of sugar in the former. 

Yams are tropical tubers; they keep well and are floury 
and palatable. 

Roots. 

Root vegetables are not so much foods as anti-scorbutics, 
and valuable on account of the salts they contain. 



250 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

Turnips contain but little nourishment ; they are watery 
and have no starch, but a jelly-like substance of the nature of 
pectose. The young leaves, known as turnip-tops, are used as 
greens. 

Carrots contain no starch, but a fair percentage of sugar, 
and are wholesome when young. 

Parsnips are used during the winter months ; they con- 
sist of a good deal of starch and some sugar. 

Beetroot is grown in France for sugar. The plant used 
as a vegetable should be carefully prepared, as any break or 
cut will cause the roots to " bleed," the red juice is lost, and 
the beet looks pale and flabby. 

Salsify, another useful root vegetable, is but little known ; 
it is easily grown and can be served in many ways, and is a 
most valuable addition to the winter list. 

Onions. This plant has a bulb, the part usually eaten, 
and the strong flavour is due to the presence of a pungent oil. 

Onions grown in England are used for flavouring, while 
the milder onions imported from Spain and Portugal are 
served as vegetables. The strong taste, disliked by many, 
can to a great extent be overcome by putting the onions 
on to cook in cold water, bringing them to the boil, and 
throwing away the first water. All articles used in preparing 
onions should be washed in cold water. This prevents the 
oil globules from bursting and soaking into the wooden board 
or spoon. 

To theOnion tribe belong Leeks, Eschalots "Shallots," 
and Chives, the latter being of a delicate flavour and useful 
in omelet making. 

In Garlic the bulb is composed of divisions called 
Cloves ; it is largely used in Spain, it has a strong taste, 
but is very nutritious. 



CHAP. XI.] Foods. 251 

Green Vegetables. 

Green vegetables are chiefly valuable for the salts and 
acids they contain. 

The Cabbage, of which there are many varieties, is the 
most familiar example of this class of vegetable. The best 
known are Savoy, Kale, Red Cabbage. Their main 
constituent is cellulose, which cannot be digested except in 
a very young state; nevertheless they are very important for 
the maintenance of health, a certain amount of indigestible 
material acting as a stimulant to the alimentary canal. They 
also contain potash and other salts. 

Before cooking green vegetables, they should be carefully 
washed and soaked in salt and water to draw out any insects. 
Cabbages should be boiled in soft water with no lid on the 
saucepan to keep them a good colour. 

Sauer Kraut is made from sliced cabbage sprinkled with 
salt, pressed and fermented. Vinegar is generally added. 

Water in which cabbages have been boiled should not be 
allowed to go down the scullery drain, but should be poured 
away outside, on earth if possible. 

Sea Kale belongs to the same family. It is forced, and 
the blanched stems and leaf-stalks are the parts eaten. 

Brussels Sprouts are Httle clusters of leaves like minia- 
ture cabbages formed in the axil of the leaves. 

Spinach is a specially wholesome vegetable. The leaves 
should only be used when quite young ; they contain so much 
water that in cooking they may be tightly packed into the 
saucepan and no water added. 

Celery may be eaten raw or cooked. The leaf-stalks are 
blanched by being grown underground ; it is considered good 
for rheumatism. 

Asparagus was originally a wild seaside English plant, 



252 Domestic Economy, [pt. II. 

now extensively cultivated and looked upon as a delicacy. 
The green kind is the best. In cooking, it should be tied up 
in bundles, the stalks only allowed to stand in the boiling 
water ; the heads cook in the steam. 

Globe or Green Artichokes are a species of cultivated 
Thistles. The heads are boiled and the leaves eaten with 
sauce or melted butter. Inside the leaves is a white part 
called artichoke bottom. These can be preserved in brine, 
and are largely used in high-class cookery. 

Sorrel is rich in oxalic acid, and is much used for 
soups and sauces in conjunction with veal, a tasteless dish 
in itself. 

Lettuces are generally served raw, and form the bulk of 
the salads eaten in England. They are said to possess narcotic 
properties. 

Other green foods used in salads are Endive, Water- 
cress, Mustard and Cress. 

They have very little nutritive value, but are rich in salts 
and serve to introduce large quantities of water into the system 
and are particularly refreshing in hot weather. 

Before passing to the Legumes or Pod vegetables there 
are a few fruits to be considered which are not valued because 
of the sugar they contain and which generally accompany 
foods with which salt is taken. 

The Tomato is now extensively grown in Great Britain, 
and its use is yearly increasing. It may be cooked in many 
different ways and is excellent eaten raw. Preserved it is 
known as ketchup, a sauce resembling the well-known mush- 
room ketchup, or may be tinned or bottled. 

Vegetable Marrows. These are aUied to the common 
gourd. They are largely grown as vegetables, but they contain 
little nourishment, 94 °/^ being composed of water. 



CHAP. XI.] . Foods. 253 

Cucumbers. These also belong to the Gourd Order. 
They are more juicy and digestible when grown quickly under 
glass, and contain 90 7o ^^ water. Young cucumbers pickled 
in vinegar are known as gherkins. 

The name of pulse is applied to peas, beans, etc., the edible 
contents of pods or legumes — and denotes a very valuable 
class of food stuffs, containing a far higher percentage of 
proteid matters than do the cereals. Pulse also contains a 
good deal of starch and of the salts of lime and potash, but is 
deficient in fats ; hence the familiar combination of " beans 
and bacon, pease-pudding and pork." 

Peas. The cultivated or garden pea is probably derived 
from a plant native of countries bordering the Black Sea. 

It is extensively cultivated in England and is eaten green 
as a fresh vegetable or dry in the form of split peas, pea-meal, 
etc. The latter are generally prepared from the field pea. 
Legumes preserved by drying should always be soaked for at 
least 12 hours before use. 

Beans. There are several kinds of beans, but the 
Haricot or French bean, and the Scarlet Runner may fairly 
be taken as examples of the same family. The pods are 
gathered green in an unripe condition and are eaten as a fresh 
vegetable. 

By Haricot beans in England, the w^hite seeds dried are 
generally understood. 

When soaked in soft water and carefully cooked they form 
a most valuable article of diet and should be more largely 
used. The peculiar " beany " flavour, so disagreeable to many, 
may be removed by throwing away the first water in which 
they are cooked. They form a cheap, nutritious diet when 
served with fat or starchy foods. 

Flageolets are preserved green Haricots. Sir Henry 
Thompson says of Haricots in Food and Feedhig: "There is 



254 Domestic Economy. [PT. il. 

no product of the vegetable kingdom so nutritious, holding its 
own in this respect, as it well can, even against the beef and 
mutton of the animal kingdom." 

The broad or Windsor bean makes an excellent vegetable 
when eaten young, but the skin or outer covering soon becomes 
hard and indigestible. 

Lentils. This plant is largely grown in South Europe. 
There are several varieties, but the red kind is perhaps the 
best. Lentils are the only Legumes that do not contain 
sulphur. They are richer in proteid matters than peas and 
beans. Revalenta Arabica and other preparations ad- 
vertised for dyspeptic patients are largely composed of Lentil 
flour. 

Fungi. Fungi may be mentioned here among Vegetable 
Foods, although they are not so largely eaten as such in 
England as they are on the Continent. They are rich in 
Proteids and some kinds contain fat or oil. 

Edible Fungi are seldom high coloured, scaly or spotted, 
and should always be eaten fresh. The common mushroom, 
Agaricus Campestris, is the one usually sold, it may be stewed, 
boiled or pickled ; when salted and pressed a sauce called 
Ketchup is produced, largely used for flavouring. 

The Morel, another species, is also used for the same 
purpose. 

The Truffle is a subterranean aromatic fungus found chiefly 
in France and Italy, where it is rooted out by pigs, or by dogs 
trained for the purpose. 

Iceland Moss is a lichen found as its name implies in 
Iceland, growing upon otherwise barren rocks. It contains a 
particular kind of starch, which is recommended to diabetic 
patients as a substitute for ordinary bread. 

Irish Moss is in reaHty a seaweed. Its chief constituent 
is a kind of mucilage which yields a jelly on boiling and may 



CHAP. XL] Foods. 255 

be used with milk to form a "shape." It is nutritious and 
digestible, but should be soaked in cold water for at least an 
hour before use. 

§ 88. Fruits. Fruits are that part of the plant which 
succeeds the flower. They are very valuable in the daily 
dietary, not only because of their nutritive value, but also on 
account of the Potash salts and the acids they contain. Fruits 
vary considerably in Food Value. They contain a substance 
called Pectose and should always be eaten in a sound, whole- 
some condition. Pectose is found in many fruits while in an 
unripe condition. This is converted into Pectin by the ferment 
action known as ripening or in the process of boiling. The 
setting or firmness of red currant jelly and other preparations 
of fruit, are due to substances resembling Pectose. 

Fruits for domestic purposes may be divided as follows : 

1. Berries. 

Gooseberries — Red, White and Black Currants — Straw- 
berries, wild and cultivated — Raspberries— Blackberries — 
Whortleberries and Cranberries. The latter are largely im- 
ported from North America and Russia, and make a pleasant 
change in the winter when mixed with apples. 

2. Fruit with Pips. 

Apples, of which there are many varieties both for cooking 
and eating. They are used too to make a fermented drink 
called Cider. 

Pears. These are generally gathered when hard and taste- 
less and are stored for several months before they are fit to eat. 
Cooking pears are best stewed gently in a jar with the addition 
of sugar, water, and some flavouring, such as cloves or lemon 
peel. 

The Quince is a strongly-flavoured fruit and is often added 
to preparations of apple. It makes excellent marmalade and 
jelly. 



256 Domestic Eco7ioniy. [pt. II. 

Medlars are a brown looking fruit picked in late autumn. 
They are uneatable until they go through a natural process 
resembling decay. 

Oranges. There are many varieties, the best known are 
the Tangerine, a small orange with a fragrant, easily detached 
rind, the Maltese or blood orange, the bitter or Seville orange. 
The latter is used for the preserve known as orange marmalade. 

The Lemon, highly prized for its citric acid and the 
fragrant, essential oil contained in the rind, pomegranates, 
pine-apples, are fruits imported into England in large quantities 
every year. 

Grapes, both black and white, when fresh and ripe, contain 
nearly 20 7o of sugar. They are chiefly grown for the purpose 
of making wine. 

3. Stone Fruits. 

These all have a hard seed containing an edible kernel, 
and are the least wholesome fruits. 

Cherries are rich in sugar. The Morello which is less 
sweet than the ordinary kind, is used in preparing the liqueur. 
Cherry Brandy. 

To the Stone Fruits belong Plums, including Damsons, 
Prunes, Greengages, etc. Also Apricots, Peaches and Necta- 
rines. 

Figs, Dates and Bananas are all fruits rich in nutritive 
value ; the two former contain more than half their weight of 
sugar, while Bananas contain less water and more nitrogenous 
matter than is generally found in fresh fruits. 

Fruits may be preserved by 

1. Drying, raisins, currants, figs, etc. 

2. Bottling, gooseberries, cherries, etc. 

3. Preserving with sugars in Jams and Jellies. 

Nuts are food products of great value ; with the exception 



CHAP. XI.] Foods. ^57 

of the Chestnut they contain little or no starch, but much 
nitrogenous matter and a large percentage of oil or fat. 

They form a rich food and are difficult of digestion unless 
ground into meal. 

Spanish Chestnuts are chiefly grown in South Europe, 
where they are made into flour and mixed with maize to form 
the well-known Italian Polenta. 



FOOD ACCESSORIES. 

§ 89. Food Adjuncts are not, as the German word 
" Geniissmittel " implies, necessary for existence, but they are 
important aids to digestion and are used to improve the flavour 
of food and to render it more appetizing. 

They all, with the exception of salt and vinegar, contain 
essential oils, which stimulate the secretion of the digestive 
juices. 

They may be divided into Condiments, Spices, Flavourings, 
Acids, Oils, and Salt. 

Under the head of Condiments are found : 

1. Mustard, made from the seeds of a plant grown 
chiefly in England. There are two kinds, white and black. 
The seeds are dried, sorted and ground. Mustard is hot and 
pungent, and excites the palate. 

2. Pepper, the fruit of a shrub found in the East Indies. 
Black pepper is prepared from the berries before they are ripe j 
white pepper is made by removing the dark covering when the 
fruit is ripe, it is less pungent. 

3. Cayenne Pepper is prepared from the red pods of a 
kind of Capsicum ; the pods are called Chillies. 

4. Capers are the fruit of a wall plant, which grows in 
the environs of Toulouse and Lyons; they are pickled and 
exported. 

B. 17 



25S Domestic Economy. [pt. II. 

Spices. 

1. Nutmegs are found in the Banda Islands and New 
Guinea. Mace is the thin skin found between the shell and 
the Nutmeg. 

2. Cloves are the dried calyx and flower buds of an 
evergreen tree belonging to the Myrtle order, growing in the 
East Indies. 

3. Cinnamon is the bark of a tree grown in Ceylon 
and used either ground or in sticks as a flavouring. 

4. Allspice or Pimento is a small dry berry from an 
evergreen tree grown chiefly in Jamaica. 

5. Ginger is the root of a plant which grows in hot 
countries. It is picked green for preserving in syrup. The 
root is washed and dried for ordinary purposes and should be 
bought in this state and grated when wanted ; powdered ginger 
is often adulterated. 

6. Cardamoms are the aromatic fruits of several plants 
belonging to the ginger order. They are used to give pungency 
and are one of the ingredients of curry powder. 

7. Bayleaves are picked from a species of Laurel and 
used as a flavouring either in a fresh condition or after having 
been carefully dried. For keeping they should be gathered on 
a fine day. 

8. Curry powder or paste is a mixture of aromatic 
spices, the former is a dry mixture and should be kept in 
tightly corked bottles. 

The following is a good recipe : 

12 ozs. Turmeric ij ozs. Cayenne pepper. 

8 ozs. Coriander seed \ oz. Cardamoms. 
6 ozs. Ginger \ oz. Cinnamon. 

5 ozs. Mustard \ oz. Cummin. 

5 ozs. Black pepper \ oz. Pimento. 



CHAP. XL] Foods. 259 

Under the head of Flavourings are included : 

1. Vanilla. Obtained from the fruit of an orchid. The 
pods, of which each plant bears about 40 annually, are the 
parts used for flavouring chocolate, cream, ices, etc. 

2. Bitter Almonds. This oil is obtained from bitter 
almonds by maceration in water and distillation. 

3. Lemon Peel is the rind of the lemon and owes its 
fragrance to an essential oil. The fresh peel is used for 
flavouring, but it may also be preserved by drying and it is 
eaten after boiling in syrup as Candied Peel. 

Herbs are used for flavouring; they should be picked in 
the summer, carefully dried in the sun, powdered and kept in 
tightly-corked bottles. The herbs in general use are Parsley, 
Thyme, Marjoram, Sweet Basil, Sage ; the former is used 
fresh. 

Acids. 

1. Vinegar is the most useful acid employed in the 
processes of cookery. The chief varieties are Wine Vinegar, 
Malt Vinegar, and Wood Vinegar ; the two first are produced 
by the fermentation of alcohol. The use of vinegar in modera- 
tion helps to maintain the alkalinity of the blood, but when 
taken in excess it impairs digestion. Vinegar is largely used in 
the preparation of pickles, such as onions, gherkins, red 
cabbage, unripe walnuts, etc. 

2. Lemon juice is a great anti-scorbutic. It should be 
clear, with an acid but not bitter taste. Citric acid, a chemical 
product, is often substituted for it. Vegetable acids are chiefly 
found in fruits. Tartaric acid in grapes, malic acid in apples, 
oxalic acid in rhubarb, tomatoes and sorrel, citric acid in 
oranges and lemons. 

Oils can hardly be classed under the head of Food 
Accessories as they really form an important section of Car- 

17 — 2 



26o Domestic Economy. [PT. Ii. 

bonaceous foods. They are found most abundantly in the fruits 
and seeds of plants. Olive oil occupies the first place among 
vegetable oils. It is obtained from the fleshy exterior of the 
fruit of the olive tree largely grown in the south of Europe 
and in the East. As an adulterant cotton seed oil is often 
substituted and is difficult to detect. In England olive oil is 
only used as a salad dressing, but in a pure state it forms the 
best frying medium. It possesses the advantages of never 
getting rancid or dry and of not freezing at ordinary tem- 
peratures. 

§ 90. Salts are essential as an ingredient in foods. They 
occur in most drinking waters and are found in all parts of 
plants and animals used as food. Besides chloride of sodium 
or common salt which is added to all foods, there are the salts 
of the vegetable acids, useful in preserving the alkalinity of 
the blood and preventing scurvy; phosphates and potash salts 
contained in vegetable and animal foods, phosphate of lime 
found chiefly in seeds and fruits, and iron which occurs in 
nearly all articles of food in minute quantities. 

Salt, Chloride of Sodium, is a mineral consisting of crystals 
which are white and sparkling when purified. It absorbs 
moisture very readily and is soluble in water. 

Common salt is obtained either as 

(i) Rock salt, when the salt is found in mines and quarried 
out like coal, or 

(2) as Brine. Water strongly impregnated with salt is found 
in certain districts, for example at Droitwich in Worcestershire, 
at Nantwich in Cheshire. It is pumped up from the earth, run 
into tanks, where it is exposed to bottom furnace heat, the 
water is driven off by evaporation and the salt left behind 
formed into blocks. 

Salt may also be obtained from the sea. By boiling down 



CHAP. XI.] Foods. 261 

and crystallizing the solution, salt may be obtained of various 
degrees of fineness. 

Baking Powder. Though not in any way a food it is 
convenient to add Baking Powder to the list of Food adjuncts, 
as it plays an important part in the preparation of many dishes. 
It is composed of an acid and an alkali, with the addition of 
rice flour, ground rice or arrowroot to give it bulk, to absorb 
any moisture there may be about and to keep the mixture from 
getting lumpy. The alkali generally used is bi-carbonate of 
soda, made by passing carbonic acid gas through a solution of 
the ordinary carbonate, washing soda, thus : — 

Carbonate of soda and \ r 7 • 1 i. r j u 

. . 1 . lorm ^/-carbonate of soda because 

Carbonic acid in the r ^^^ y^^^^^^^^^^ ;^ j^^jj^,^ 

presence of water j 

Carbonate of soda is sometimes used alone in place of other 
baking powders, it always needs the presence of some acid, 
sour milk or lemon, to avoid a flat, soapy taste. 

Tartaric acid or Cream of tartar, the former in powder, are 
the acids usually mixed with bi-carbonate of soda. 

Tartaric acid crystals are prepared from the fermented mass 
of grapes crushed in the process of wine making ; Cream of 
tartar crystallizes on the sides of the wine casks. 

Cream of tartar is best for making baking powder, as it 
does not part readily with its gas until it is heated. 

Baking powder should be kept in dry tins and stored in a 
dry place. When the acid and the alkali are moistened effer- 
vescence takes place and carbonic acid gas is given off", this in 
trying to escape raises the cake mixture or pastry to which it 
has been added. 

Recipes for Baking Powder : 

I. Tartaric acid 3 ozs. II. Cream of tartar 4 ozs. 

Bi-carbonate soda 4 ozs. Bi-carbonate soda 2 ozs. 

Ground rice 4 ozs. Ground rice 6 ozs. 



262 Domestic Economy. [pt. Ii. 

The materials should be very dry and thoroughly mixed ; 
to avoid all lumps they may be pounded in a mortar or put 
through a sieve. In using baking powder the proportions are : 

For plain pastry and rich cakes i teaspoonful to i lb. flour. 

For plain cakes, scones, etc. 2 teaspoonsful to i lb. flour. 



BEVERAGES. 

§ 91. Beverages belong to the group known as Food 
Adjuncts and they may be roughly divided into alcoholic 
and non-alcoholic. 

Several contain Nitrogenous substances called Alkaloids^ 
which act powerfully on the nervous system. 

The most common non-alcoholic beverages are Tea, Cofl'ee, 
Cocoa. 

Tea. Tea is the dried leaves of a shrub grown in China, 
India and Ceylon. Its value depends chiefly on the age of the 
leaves and the soil in which the plant is grown. When the 
shrub is thiee years old the young leaves at the top which 
make the best tea are picked first ; there are three other 
pickings during the season with about a month between each, 
but the first is the best. Teas may be divided into green and 
black teas ; the former owes its colour to being dried quickly 
when fresh, while the black tea is prepared from the same 
leaves allowed to lie in heaps for about twelve hours, after 
which time they are slowly dried over charcoal fires. The 
name given to tea prepared from the top leaves of the shrub is 
Orange Pekoe, the lower leaves are known as Souchong and 
Congou. The alkaloid to which tea owes its stimulating pro- 
perties is known as Thehie; it acts upon the central nervous 
system and promotes the action of the skin, but Hke all other 
stimulants should be indulged in in moderation. Besides 
Theine, tea contains Tannin, an astringent. Tannin acts on the 



CHAP. XL] Foods. ■ 263 

digestive juices, retarding their action, thus physiologically a 
" Meat Tea " is a mistake. 

In making tea care should be taken to reduce the quantity 
of Tannin to a minimum. The quality of the tea, and of the 
water used for making the infusion are in this respect 77wst 
important. The teapot should be heated before the tea is put 
in and the water should h^ freshly boiled. If very hard it may 
be softened by the addition of a pinch of carbonate of soda. 
Tea should never be allowed to stand more than 3 — 4 minutes, 
but the infusion may be poured into another previously heated 
teapot. The common practice among the working class of 
allowing the teapot to stew on the hob or in the oven cannot 
be too strongly deprecated. 

Coffee. Coffee is made from the seed of a shrub, native 
of Abyssinia. Large quantities come from Ceylon, Java, the 
West Indies, etc. 

The fruit of the coffee tree contains two seeds, which when 
removed are roasted and the moisture driven off. This opera- 
tion should be postponed until the coffee is actually required, 
as the oil which is developed by the roasting process and which 
gives coffee its fragrant aroma, is very volatile and speedily 
escapes. The alkaloid is known as Caffeine and its effects 
are the same as those of Theine. 

Coffee is frequently adulterated with Chicory, especially the 
kind sold under the name of "French Coffee." It is quite 
harmless and the flavour mixed with the coffee is preferred by 
many people. It may be easily detected, as pure coffee grounds 
float on water, while chicory rapidly sinks to the bottom. 

To ensure good coffee, the beans should be freshly roasted 
and ground before use and sufficient coffee allowed, about one 
ounce to each large cup. To obtain strong coffee, place the 
grounds in a saucepan over a fire until thoroughly hot, when 
boiling water should be poured over them, half-a-pint to the oz. 
and the mixture allowed to infuse for 5 to 10 minutes before 



264 Domestic Economy. [pt. 1 1. 

being strained. Coffee is not a food, but when made with 
boiling milk its food value is considerable. 

Cocoa. Cocoa is prepared from a tree found in Brazil, 
the West Indies and Ceylon. The cocoa beans, which some- 
what resemble thick almonds, are carefully roasted in revolving 
cylinders over coke fires. The crushed beans are known as 
7iibs; when rolled they form flake cocoa. 

It is not only a beverage, but ranks as an important food 
stuff, containing fat, starch, nitrogenous matters, besides cellu- 
lose, water, and an alkaloid called Theobromine. The action 
of the latter is less stimulating than that of tea or coffee. 
Preparations of cocoa, especially those that thicken in the cup 
on the addition of liquid, are mixed with starch and sugar. 
Cocoa husks boiled long and gently will yield a thin refreshing 
beverage at a very small cost. 

Kola nuts contain Theine and have the power of taking 
away the feeling of fatigue. Mixed with cocoa they are con- 
sidered most nutritious. 

Chocolate is a preparation of cocoa and sugar flavoured 
with vanilla ; the cocoa is crushed under heated rollers and the 
paste thus formed is pressed into moulds. 

Aerated Waters. This class of non-alcoholic beverages 
may be divided into natural mineral waters, such as Vichy, 
Ems, etc., and those manufactured from ordinary drinking 
water by being charged with carbonic acid and other gases. 

The best known among the latter are Soda Water, Potash 
and Seltzers. The materials used are baking-soda, tartaric 
acid, carbonate of potash, etc. 

Ordinary soda water is generally plain water from which 
the air has been expelled, charged with carbonic acid gas. 

The chief source of danger is from the employment of 
impure water ; unfortunately carbonic acid gas under pressure 
is not fatal to micro-organisms. 



CHAP. XL] Foods. 265 

Alcoholic Beverages. 

Alcoholic beverages may be divided into two classes : 
Fermented Liquors. Ale, beer, porter. Wines. 
Distilled Spirits. Gin, brandy, rum, whisky. 

These beverages are called fermented liquors because the 
alcohol in them is due to a process called fermentation, set up 
in the sugars extracted from fruits, etc., or in the sugars 
prepared by art from potatoes, cereals, grains, and starches 
generally. 

In the process of fermentation the sugar is split up into 
alcohol and carbonic acid gas, the former remains in the 
liquid, the latter escapes as a gas. The change is brought 
about by the action of yeast, a one-cell plant, a microscopic 
fungus of the simplest possible structure, which feeds on sugar 
and breaks it up, converting it into alcohol. The necessary 
conditions for fermentation are warmth, moisture, and sweet- 
ness. Starch, such as we find in barley, when moistened and 
warmed encourages germination, and this develops the diastase, 
a ferment dormant in the grain, which acts on the surrounding 
starch, converting it into a species of sugar known as maltose. 

There are two distinct chemical processes in the manu- 
facture of fermented drinks ; first the change of starch into 
sugar, secondly the change of sugar into alcohol and carbonic 
acid gas. 

Alcohol consists of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, and 
burns without residue, forming carbonic acid gas and water. 
It boils at a temperature of about 180° Fahrenheit, an im- 
portant item to remember in using wine for cooking purposes, 
for, if added early in the process, the alcohol will evaporate 
with the heat. 

Proof spirit is roughly, half alcohol and half water, weaker 
or stronger spirits than this are known as under or over proof 
Pure alcohol is lighter than water and has never been frozen. 
It has a great affinity for water and is used for preserving 



266 Domestic Economy. [pt. 1 1. 

animal substances. "\\^hen added to the raw white of egg, it 
coagulates the albumen, rendering it stringy and solid. It 
acts as a poison when swallowed, causing violent irritation of 
the stomach and, in extreme cases, paralysis of the brain. 
Compared with coffee, the stimulus supplied by alcohol is 
transitory and supplies no real energy. It lowers the temper- 
ature of the body by quickening the heart-beat and filling the 
surface capillaries with blood, giving a momentary sensation of 
heat, w^hich is immediately lost by radiation. 

Beer is a fermented infusion of malt flavoured with hops, 
or a saccharine decoction with the addition of some bitter. 
In making beer, barley is converted into sugar by the process 
of malting, and this saccharine solution is converted into 
alcohol by fermentation. 

For malting, the barley is soaked in water, in order to make 
it sprout or germinate ; the grains are then spread out on a 
floor and exposed to gentle heat ; the two conditions of growth 
are here supplied, moisture and warmth. In a short time, 
about 14 days, the starch contained in the grain is converted 
by the action of the diastase or ferment into a species of sugar, 
known as maltose. The process is stopped by exposing the 
malt to greater heat, and the colouring of the various ales 
depends greatly on the degree of roasting to which the sprout- 
ing barley is subjected. In the next process the malt is sifted 
or screened to remove the sproutings, dirt, stones, etc., before 
being crushed between iron rollers. The next stage is called 
mashing. The malt is put into a tub with a moveable false 
bottom full of holes, which allows the water to drain through, 
hot water is poured on and the mixture is occasionally stirred 
to enable it to extract all the sugar from the barley. This 
" sweet wort " is then boiled in coppers with hops to give it a 
bitter taste, yeast is next added and the liquor is left to 
"work." Carbonic acid gas and alcohol are formed; some of 
the former escapes, the rest remains in the beer and gives it 



CHAP. XI.] Foods. 267 

the sparkling taste. The quantity of yeast added and the 
temperature at which fermentation takes place vary with 
different kinds of beer. Pale and mild ales are made from 
the finest dried malt and best hops : porter and stout are 
beers in which the colour is produced by the roasting of the 
malt. German beers are fermented at a lower temperature, 
they contain less alcohol than English beers, but are richer in 
carbonic acid gas. 



Malt extract 


Alcohol 


Carbonic Acid 


Water 


Porter 6-o 


5 '4 


•16 


88-44 


Ale 14-5 


5-9 




79-6 


Munich Beer 9*2 


4*2 


•17 


86-49. 



Wines. The term wine is generally limited to the liquor 
prepared from the juice of the grape. In England and in 
some part of the Continent there is apple-wine or cider pro- 
duced from apples, pear-wine or perry made from pears. 

When the sugary juice of the grape is left to itself at a 
moderate temperature, fermentation takes place, the sugar is 
converted into alcohol and carbonic acid gas is formed. New 
wines contain aldehyd (alcohol dehydrogenated, deprived of 
the hydrogen required to form water), which later on gets 
oxidized into acetic acid and, if exposed long enough to the 
air, is converted into ordinary wine vinegar. 

The colour, taste, and character of wines depend to a 
great extent on how far they are made from grape juice only. 
Different kinds of grapes yield different kinds of wine, and 
much depends on the soil, the season, and the climate, in 
which the vine is grown and ripened. By a dry wine is meant 
one of a flavour which is not sweetness ; it may be produced 
by juice from a poor grape or be made " dry " artificially. 

The nutritive value of wines is small and they owe their 
stimulating properties to the presence of alcohol. Clarets and 
light wines are anti-scorbutics on account of the acids they 
contain. Sparkling wines are bottled during the process of 
fermentation, when carbonic acid gas is being given off They 



268 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

may also be made by forcing in carbonic acid gas under 
pressure. 

Clarets are French red wines from the South of France, 
they are less acid than other French wines. Burgundy is 
made from black or white grapes grown in the central district 
of France, it contains more saccharine matters than claret. 
Champagne is made from white grapes ; the wine undergoes a 
second fermentation in bottle and is stored in very cold cellars. 
Sherry is a Spanish wine, its value depends on its age. Mar- 
sala is made in Sicily. Ports are grown in Spain and take 
their name from the town of Oporto. 

Spirits are obtained by the distillation of alcoholic liquors ; 
they include brandy, whisky, rum, and gin. The fermented 
liquor is boiled, and alcohol having a lower boiling-point than 
water and being more volatile comes off first. It is passed 
into a long pipe surrounded outside by cold water, which 
condenses the vapour into a liquid form again. To get rid of 
the remaining water it must be re-distilled. Brandy is made 
from the distillation of wine, it darkens with age, but is 
generally artificially coloured by the addition of caramel or 
burnt sugar. Whisky is prepared from malted grain; inferior 
kinds are prepared from barley, rye, or mashed potatoes, 
roughly distilled and burnt to give them a smoky flavour. 
Rum is obtained from molasses by distillation. It is chiefly 
made in Jamaica, and is often flavoured with slices of pine- 
apple. Gin is manufactured from a mixture of malt and 
barley flavoured with juniper berries. It is sold sweetened 
and unsweetened ; " Hollands " is a Dutch spirit. 

Liqueurs are spirituous drinks artificially formed and 
flavoured with vegetable essences. The best known are : 
absinthe, a greenish liquid with an essential flavouring of oil 
of wormwood, much used in France, where it takes the place 
of the gin sold in England ; noyau, flavoured with bitter 
almonds ; ratafia, with black currants. Chartreuse contains 
essential oil of angelica and a peculiar form of turpentine. 



CHAP. XI.] Foods, 269 

PROCESSES OF COOKERY. 

I. Roasting. 

§ 92. Roast ini^ is the method of cooking most commonly 
used in England and is effected by radiant heat. For roasting 
in front of the fire a "Jack" is required, which being wound 
up, causes the joint to revolve slowly before a bright clear fire. 

The meat should first be wiped with a damp cloth and 
weighed. 

Allow \ hour to the lb. and \ hour over for small joints, 
and 20 minutes to the lb. and 20 minutes over for large pieces 
of beef, mutton, veal, lamb and pork. For the latter it is 
usual to give 25 minutes as it is very unwholesome if at all 
underdone. 

Sometimes meat is floured before roasting ; but this is 
entirely a matter of choice. 

The joint should be placed close to the fire for the first ten 
minutes to harden \\\^ proteids, which form a case to retain the 
juices of the meat. 

The heat should then be lessened and the actual cooking 
carried on more slowly. 

It is necessary to baste the joint every 10 minutes, i.e. the 
melted fat which has run from the meat should be poured over 
the surface to prevent it from becoming dry or from burning. 

Rabbits and poultry, which have no fat, should have a slice 
of fat bacon laid over them, and sometimes even require to be 
protected by a piece of buttered paper, which is removed 
during the last \ hour. 

Principle. The coagulation of Proteids, familiar to us in 
the poaching of an egg, takes place at a temperature of 160'' 
Fahrenheit; therefore overheating is a waste and tends to 
destroy the nutritive value of the food. 



270 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

Baking. Meat is sometimes baked in a well-ventilated 
oven, instead of being roasted in front of the fire. 

This is a less wholesome method, as the air in the latter 
process develops certain flavours which render the joint more 
appetizing. 

For baking, a special double tin should be used ; the lower 
one is filled with water which prevents the dripping from 
burning. 

The meat should be placed on bars, resembling part of a 
gridiron, in the upper tin to avoid getting sodden in the melted 
fat. 

Neither roasting nor baking is an economical method of 
Cookery because : 

1. The best joints must be used. 

2. A bright clear fire should be kept up. 

3. Considerable loss in weight, about 5 ozs. in the lb., 
takes place, from the melting of the fat and the evaporation of 
water. 



II. Boiling. 

§ 93. Boiling is cooking by immersion in water at a tem- 
perature of 212° Fahrenheit. 

When water is heated, the air in the water and the steam 
shoot up in the form of bubbles. 

These break beneath the surface of the water and the rising 
steam in the bubbles is turned again to water (condensed). 

As the whole of the water becomes hotter, these bubbles 
rise higher and at last break on the surface of the water. 

In this process of Cooking the principle on which the heat 
should be applied is exactly the same as in baking and 
roasting. The temperature should be high to begin with — 
212° Fahrenheit — to be succeeded by a lower one, 185° 
Fahrenheit, simmering point. If the water be allowed to boil 



CHAP. XI.] Foods. 271 

the whole time, the proteids in the meat will harden and 
render it tough and tasteless. 

To ascertain that the water is at the right temperature, 
notice whether the surface of the liquid bubbles only at one 
point, near the edges. 

With a still surface there is too little heat, with a bubbling 
one too much. 

Fresh meat should be wiped and weighed before cooking, 
and 20 minutes to the lb. and 20 minutes over allowed. 

Salt meat should be put into cold or lukewarm water, and 
gradually brought to the boil to draw out some of the salt. 

Salt increases the density of water and raises boiling point 
to 224° Fahrenheit. 

Boiling is only suitable for the best joints ; about 4 ozs. in 
the lb. are lost during the process. 

The water in which fresh meat has been cooked should be 
kept, as it contains a certain amount of goodness from the 
meat. It is usually called *'Pot Liquor" and forms a valuable 
basis for soups and gravies. 

Steaming is cooking in the steam or vapour arising from 
boiling water. 

In steaming the bubbles break beneath the surface and the 
steam is turned to water again at a temperature of about 
185° Fahrenheit. 

This is an economical and digestible method of preparing 
food, as none of the goodness is lost, and is especially useful in 
cooking Fish and Puddings. 

Longer time must be allowed than for boiling. 

A kettle of boiling water should always be at hand to 
replenish the water if an ordinary Fish Kettle or Steamer be 
used. 

Steamers are now constructed in separate compartments, 
one above the other, so that several courses can be prepared at 
once. 



272 Domestic Economy. [pt. Ii. 

III. Stewing. 

§ 94. Stewing is cooking meat very gently in a covered 
pan with a little liquid. 

In stewing the object is not to shut in the juices of the 
meat, but to extract them that they may flavour the gravy and 
vegetables of which the stew is largely composed. 

Stewing may be carried on in an ordinary iron stew-pan, in 
a double pan known as a bain-marie, or simply in a covered 
earthenware jar. A bain-marie may be readily improvised by 
standing a jar in a saucepan of water. 

Stewing is the most economical way of cooking, as the 
cheaper parts of meat may be used, but little fire is needed, 
and all the juices are either in the meat or in the gravy. 

Vegetables or dumplings may be added, which render the 
stew more tasty and satisfying. 

There are two classes of stews : 

1. That in which a gravy or sauce is first made by 
frying vegetables and flour in hot fat and adding liquid before 
putting in the meat. 

Example. Exeter Stew. 

2. That in which the meat and vegetables are cooked 

together with the addition of stock or water, forming their own 

gravy. 

Example. Irish Stew. 

In stewing the proteids are gently set, the juices are partly 
extracted and the fibres of the meat are softened. 

IV. Frying. 

§ 95. Frying is cooking in hot fat at a temperature of 
380° Fahrenheit. 

This temperature is of great importance and varies within 
certain Hmits according to the nature of the food to be cooked ; 
such things as whitebait and chipped potatoes requiring a 
temperature of 400° Fahrenheit. 



CHAP. XL] Foods, 273 

There is very little difficulty in recognising the heat re- 
quired for ordinary frying purposes. 

The surface of the fat should be smooth and still, bubbling 
denotes the presence of water, and until this has been driven 
off the fat will not be ready. 

Then a faint blue smoke should arise all over the pan, and 
this denotes that the temperature of 380° Fahrenheit has been 
approximately attained. 

Another method is to throw in a piece of dry bread, if it 
crisps and browns the fat is ready for use. 

There are two kinds of frying : 

1. Dry Frying. When only enough fat is used to 
cover the bottom of a shallow pan and to prevent sticking; 
it is used for pancakes, sausages etc. 

2. Wet Frying. When the saucepan is half full of fat. 
For this a stew-pan 4 — 5 inches high and 7 — 8 inches across is 
required, into which a frying basket should fit. 

The best frying mediums are olive-oil, dripping, butter, 
lard, albene. 

The stew-pan should be two-thirds full and about 3 lbs. will 
be required for one 8 inches in diameter. 

The fat, if properly treated, can be used over and over 
again ; it should be left to cool a little after use, then carefully 
strained and put aside. From time to time this fat may be 
clarified. 

Frying in deep fat is not an extravagant process : pieces of 
fat from the meat can be kept, rendered down and used for 
this purpose. 

The preparation for frying is very various. 

The food may be lightly floured, dipped in batter or rolled 
in egg and bread-crumbs. 

When things are fried in a basket and in deep fat, lift out 
the basket and let them drain, and then remove them as 
quickly as possible and lay them on crumpled kitchen paper. 

B. 18 



274 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

If this part of the process is neglected the food will look and 
taste greasy. 

In frying bacon, the pan should be heated before the 
rashers are put in. 

A frying-pan should never be washed, but wiped out 
carefully with pieces of soft paper. 



§ 96. Broilifig or Grillmg. Broiling resembles Roasting 
and is cooking by radiant heat ; it is only used for small 
pieces of meat, such as chops and steaks. 

The fire should be bright and clear, without smoke or 
flame. 

One method is to hang a gridiron in front of the fire ; but 
the result is not the same as when the gridiron is placed about 
four inches above a bed of glowing coals. 

The gridiron should be heated, then slightly greased, the 
meat is held close to the fire for two minutes, then turned 
between the blades of two knives and the other side exposed to 
the heat for two minutes, it should then be turned every two 
minutes until cooked. It takes from 10 to 15 minutes, but 
depends greatly on the thickness of the chop or steak, and 
whether it is required well or underdone. 

Braising is partly stewing, partly roasting. It is a suitable 
way of cooking small pieces of meat and tasteless joints of 
veal. 

Special braizing pans are constructed with a sunk lid to 
hold hot charcoal so that both bottom and top heat may be 
applied ; but an ordinary stew-pan will answer the purpose. 

The meat to be braized should be placed on a bed of 
vegetables (carrot, turnip, onion, celery, bouquet garni) with 
enough stock to nearly cover the vegetables ; the lid should fit 
the pan closely and be shut in over a sheet of buttered paper. 
The whole should simmer gently for about two to three hours 
the meat being occasionally basted with a little of the gravy. 



CHAP. XI.] Foods. 275 

When the meat is done, take it out and place in a baking 
tin, brush over with a little butter, or glaze and let it brown in 
the oven. 

Braised meat is generally larded with strips of fat bacon. 

Re-Heating Cold Meat. Meat warmed up is more nourish- 
ing and digestible than cold meat, and can also be made to go 
much further. 

Special attention should be paid to its preparation, and it 
is necessary to remember that the meat has already been 
cooked. 

Underdone meat is more readily and tastily re-heated than 
dry, over-cooked pieces. 

The gravies and sauces used in the concoction of the 
dishes must be thoroughly cooked and well-flavoured. 

They should be carefully prepared and the meat only 
heated through, never allowed to boil. 

While re-heating, meat should be protected from the direct 
action of the fire, and this can be accomplished by covering it 
with a sauce, — egg and bread-crumbs, batter, or with pastry or 
potato crust. 



§ 97. Stock Making. Stock, which is the foundation of 
all soups in which meat is used, is an infusion obtained by 
simmering meat, bones and vegetables in water. 

The object is to soften the fibres of the meat and extract 
all the goodness of the bones by gradual cooking. 

In preparing Stock, the bones should be broken up and 
the meat cut into small pieces and the whole placed in a 
pan, covered with cold water and brought gradually to the 
boil. 

Vegetables and herbs may then be added and the whole 
simmered for four hours, carefully skimming from time to 
time. 



276 Domestic Economy. [pt. II. 

The Stock should then be strained and left till cold when 
the fat can be easily removed. 

The bones can be used again with fresh vegetables until 
they present a porous appearance, which denotes that the 
goodness has all been extracted. 

In hot weather turnips should be avoided in Stock making, 
as they are apt to turn it sour. 

Stock should never be left to get cold in the Stock-pot, but 
emptied into a basin and the pot carefully cleaned and dried. 

There are four classes of Stock : 

1. Brown Stock, made from beef and mutton. 

2. White Stock, made from the bones of chickens, 
rabbits, veal. 

3. Fish Stock, prepared from the bones and trimmings 
of fish. 

4. Game Stock, made from the carcases and bones of 
any kind of game. 

In all kinds of cooking stock is a necessity, and a supply 
should always be at hand. 

The cost depends on the management of the person in 
charge of the kitchen; a good manager will always keep the 
stock-pot going and there are certain things which should 
always be set aside for this purpose. 

Bones of meat, poultry or game, cooked or raw trimmings 
of raw or cooked meat, feet of sheep and lambs, necks, gizzards 
and feet of game and poultry, rind and trimmings of tongue 
and ham, water in which fresh joints or fowls have been boiled, 
known as " pot liquor." 

Soup is a light, nourishing, economical form of food, easy 
of digestion and may be prepared from vegetables, milk, etc., 
without Meat Stock. 

Beef Tea is not a soup in the ordinary sense of the word, 
but it may be reckoned in the preparation of Stock. 



CHAP. XI.] Foods. 277 

It is generally known as an extractive and is no longer 
regarded as a food ; it acts as a stimulant and lessens the waste 
of tissue. 

Beef Tea in the form of jelly is a no stronger nutrient than 
that given in the liquid form. 

The stiffening or "setting" power is due to gelatine, a 
nitrogenous substance obtained through the slow boiling of 
bones, muscle, skin of animals or fish. 

Isinglass, considered the purest form of gelatine, is obtained 
from the floating bladder of the sturgeon. 

Although gelatine is classed as a nitrogenous product, it 
should not be looked upon as a Food. It prevents waste of 
tissue and contributes to nutrition when mixed with a due 
proportion of other products, such as milk, cream, etc. 

In preparing Beef Tea with great care, as much as 6 "^/q of 
the nutritive value of the meat may be retained, but as usually 
made, it hardly contains 3 7o \ it is erroneous to look on meat 
extracts as foods, they should be regarded as tonics and 
adjuncts to most other forms of nourishment. 



278 



CHAPTER XII. 
The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 

§ 98. The teaching of Domestic Economy is governed 
by general principles, and in a well thought out lesson on 
Cookery or Laundry manual dexterity and instruction should 
go hand in hand, thus supporting and helping each other. 

Both the Science and Art of Education should have been 
thoroughly studied before any branch of teaching is taken 
up ; it is only proposed here to present a few notes of lessons 
and blackboard sketches, as a practical application of the 
Science and Art of Education to the various subjects embraced 
under the title of Domestic Economy. 

In the first place the teacher must bear in mind that, in 
these subjects as well as in others, he must not " only under- 
stand how to impart knowledge and dexterity, but also how 
to impart them both in such a manner that they may make for 
the mental development of the pupil." 

Mind and body are closely interdependent, therefore in 
the arrangement of a lesson both should be considered. 

The three special points to be impressed are : — % 

1. The cultivation of observation. 

2. The cultivation of memory. 

3. The formation of new ideas. 



CHAP. XIL] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 279 

The subjects and methods of teaching must be adapted to 
the stage of mental development reached by the pupil, nor 
should physical surroundings be forgotten. The intimate as- 
sociation of brain and mind should never be lost sight of, nor 
the fact that the faculties of a growing body increase in power 
day by day. 

It should ever be borne in mind that in order to give a 
successful lesson the attention and i?iterest of the pupils should 
be secured. 

Interest is "one of the most powerful agents which the 
teacher can employ to stimulate mental activity and train the 
attention." 

Inattention in a class is often the fault of the teacher, 
and every effort should be made to remedy the defect. 

To secure this object the teacher must himself be in- 
terested in the lesson, be ready to vary it, have a bright 
sympathetic manner, and know how to cultivate and develop 
the faculties of the children. 

Attention, like other faculties, can only be attained by 
exercise, and each effort tends to make the next easier, thus the 
habit is gradually established. 

The two methods of giving a lesson are : — 

I. By telling — lecturing — instructing. 

II. By questioning — leading the class to enquire and dis- 
cover. 

I. The first method is used for imparting fresh knowledge 
at a Demonstration Class, the second is used during all parts 
of a lesson. 

In giving fresh information at a Demonstration Class, it is 
necessary to secure the interest and co-operation of the pupils, 
and the following ways as a rule are found most successful : — 

A. By illustration. 

B. By use of the blackboard. 



28o Domestic Economy. [PT. il. 

A. The teaching of Domestic Economy affords many 

facilities for Illustration. 

Illustration. 

1. The object itself. The actual material can be shown. 
Example. In a lesson on bread-making to children in 

Standard IV. samples of the various cereals may be shown, the 
varieties of flour, the action of yeast, etc. 

2. Pictorial Representation. 
Example. A picture may be displayed. 

To a more advanced class in the same subject diagrams 
of starch-grains may be used, showing their varying forms in 
different plants. 

3. Description. 

Example. A verbal picture suitable only for older 
children, by which a graphic account of the various pro- 
cesses concerned in the conversion of wheat into the different 
kinds of flour can be related. 

B. The use of the Blackboard. 

This is a very important part of a lesson and should never 
be omitted. 

Blackboard. 

A blackboard sketch should display an epi- 
tome of the lesson given, and sum up in a short, concise 
manner the various points emphasized. 

The blackboard appeals to the eye ; by it a teacher can 
illustrate a lesson wdth drawings and enforce the meaning of 
technical terms, etc. It is absolutely essential to a lesson, 
and where not provided, a piece of American cloth or a sheet 
of brown paper will make effective temporary substitutes. 

II. The second method. Questioning, falls into three 
parts : 

Questions. . -r-. • i .^^ 

A. Experimental Questions. 

These are used at the beginning of a lesson to find out if 
there is any previous knowledge. 



CHAP. XII,] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 281 

B. Educative Questions. 

These are used throughout a lesson. 

They should be framed in simple language, clear and to 
the point, and be so constructed as not to require "Yes" or 
" No " for answer. 

Let the questions be arranged in a definite order, and let 
that order be progressive. 

Start with the first fact, and let the questions depend one 
upon the other like stones in an arch. 

C. Examinative or Test Questions. 

These questions are used towards the end of the lesson 
for the purpose of recapitulation. 

They test the thoroughness of the teaching and, if well 
directed, have the advantage of impressing the lesson upon 
the minds of the pupils in a clear, consecutive, orderly manner. 

No lesson can be efficiently given without careful prepara- 
tion : the amount must depend on the skill and 

^ Preparation. 

experience of the teacher. 

Notes of lessons should be drawn up, and the key-note 
of a course should be contittuity. 

In giving a course in Domestic Economy it Lessons."^ 
is possible to ground each lesson on a preceding 
one. A few well-directed questions at the beginning of a fresh 
class will serve to stimulate the children's memory and establish 
a link with the previous lesson. 

Notes of lessons are, so to speak, the plan of campaign, 
which the teacher settles before beginning a course of instruc- 
tion, so that there may be no failure or confusion. 

Notes of lessons are a draft of the lesson in which all the 
important points, whether of method or matter, are clearly 
marked. 

They should, however, leave the teacher free, as circum- 
stances may arise during the lesson which will render a change 
necessary. 



282 Domestic Economy. [pt. II. 

While actually engaged in the work, a better way of de- 
veloping a point or overcoming a difficulty may present itself. 

Every teacher should prepare his own Notes ; those given 
here are only to indicate lines on which they may be drawn 
up and developed. 

In arranging a lesson it is first necessary to ascertain if 
there is any previous knowledge; then the facts should be 
selected and arranged, and the best method of presenting 
them to the children considered. 

To secure a good lesson the teacher will do well to re- 
hearse it privately and try and find out how the facts are 
likely to strike his hearers. The great object to be attained is 
not only to impart fresh information, but to induce the class to 
work 7vith the teacher. 

To secure this co-operation a line of questioning must be 
thought out. 

The notes should indicate the mental work the teacher 
wants the children to do, and what definite information they 
are likely to derive from the lesson. 

The success of a class depends greatly upon the arrange- 
ciass Man- mcnts made for carrying out the work and for 
agement. the proper exercise of discipline and control. 

The room set aside for the teaching of Domestic Economy 
subjects should be carefully planned. Where 
only a class-room is available, a little manage- 
ment will enable the lesson to be given satisfactorily. 

The Education Code provides that a Cookery Class-room 

should contain at least 600 superficial feet and 

C(Se"^^^^°" 8400 cubic feet, and that it should be so placed 

that smells from it cannot pervade other rooms. 

See Schedule vii. 17. 

The question of the range is frequently discussed, but it 
should be remembered that the one in general 
use in the neighbourhood should be the one 
selected. 



CHAP. XII.] The TeacJiing of Domestic Eco7iomy. 
. 1 



283 



ENTRANCE 



SLATE SLAB 



DRESSER 




SCULLERY 






-^ 



RANGE 



Width 23 jeet 6 in. 



i< 



DEMONSTRATION 



TABLE 
PRACTICE TABLI 



GALLERY 



SEATS 



TO HOLD 



Fifty four 



^ 



■<, 



1 



5 

§ 2 
z 



J 



< 

> 
Pi 

)4 
O 

o 
U 

o 
o 

X 

u 

OS 



Qi, 
I 

w 

H 
Z 

O 

ai 

o 
o 
u 



284 Do7nestic Economy. [pt. Ii. 

Now that cooking by gas is so common it is useful, in a 
town, to supplement the range by a gas-stove on the penny 
in the slot system ; by these means the class can be shown 
the most economical methods of using both. 

The oven should measure not less than 18 inches, and 
there should be a good supply of hot water. 

A gallery or raised platform, large enough to accom- 

^j ^ modate 54 children, is required, and should 

be furnished with sloping desks for writing 
purposes. 

At a permanent centre pictures relating to the various 
subjects taught may be hung upon the walls, and collections 
of different materials in various stages, such as starch, flour, 
cocoa, tea, soap, etc., will often prove useful in interesting 
the children. 

Every Class-room must be provided with a Blackboard. 

The table for a Demonstration Lesson must be placed so 
^ . , that the class can see every movement of the 

Tables. ^ 

teacher, and the range should be fixed at a 
convenient spot not too far away. 

The sink and water supply should be in one corner of 
the room in full view. 

At a Practice Class the tables placed with the teacher 
standing at T gives full control over the pupils, and is a better 
way than putting them T-shaped or in one long line. 

Demonstration Classes are generally arranged to last two 

hours, and it must be remembered that this is 

Lesson* ° a long time for restless children. Therefore it is 

a great mistake to allow them to remain in 

one position the whole time and to expect them to give 

undeviating attention. 

In the pause that comes in a Cookery Lesson, when the 
teacher has prepared the dishes and is about to give the 
blackboard sketch and lesson, a break may conveniently be 
made. 



CHAP. XII.] The TeacJiing of Domestic Economy. 285 



A few minutes in the fresh air, a few physical exercises, or 
a song, will brighten up attention and afford relief. 

A teacher of Domestic Economy should be very careful 
to maintain law, discipline, and order, and the ^^^^^ 
conditions under which the work is performed 
should be as bright and pleasant as possible. 

Tact and decision are necessary factors in a successful 
teacher, and it should be remembered that true discipline is 
a matter of growth. 

Steady influence must be brought to bear to induce each 
scholar to be amenable to the control and discipline which 
should characterize every class. 



286 Domestic Economy. [PT. IT. 



\The Notes of Lesso?is ivhich folloiv are given as examples of 
arra?tge?nent of the matter. They are not to be regarded as sub- 
stiiiites for the preparation of iJiaterial by the teacher. Each 
teacher must devise her ow?i ordering of siibject-7naterial^ 

(1) NOTES OF LESSON ON FOOD. 

§ 99. Aim. To show : 

I. What Food is. 

II. Its classification and constituents. 

III. Its absorption. 

Time : 45 minutes. 

Apparatus. Blackboard : some boiling and cold water: 
some cornflour or starch : a lump of sugar : a piece of butter : 
a piece of meat. 

I. Food is the material taken into the body by which 
-the structures are renewed and the vital processes maintained. 

What do you see stokers doing with the engines 
in the statiofis? 

This water and coal are the food of the engine : 
without them it could not move. 

In the sa??ie way, we feed our bodies to give them 
strength^ heat, a?id 7tiovement. 

Do we eat o?ily one ki?td of food? 

Several kinds of food are necessary, each for its own 
special work. 



CHAP. XTI.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 287 

II. There are Three classes of Foods. 

Nitrogenous, which include the Proteids and gelatine. 

Non-Nitrogenous. 

{a) Carbohydrates, e.g. sugars and starches. 
{b) Fats. 

Salts. 

What is the special use of Nitrogenous Foods 1 
Ail livi7ig matter contains Nitrogen^ therefore to 

build up living matter Nitrogenous food is 

needed. 

We find this kind of food forming one of the con- 
stituents of 



Meat — Fibrin. 

Milk — Casein or curd. 

White of eggs — Albumen. 

Flour — Gluten. 

Peas and Beans — Legumin. 



What work do the Non-Nitrogenous Foods 
perform in our bodies 1 

They chiefly aid p7'oteid foods in building up tissues. 
This group may be divided into : 

A. Starchy Foods — Carbohydrates. 

B. Fatty Foods. 

Some of these foods are more heat-giving than others. 

What do the people in Greetiland eat ? 

What do the inhabitants of hot comitries^ say 
Fndia, chiefly live on ? 



288 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

A. Starchy Foods include 

Rice, Flour, Potatoes, Sugar, etc. 

B. Fatty Foods, 

Butter, Suet, Oil, etc. 

What is the third class of Food, and tvhat is 
its purpose in the body 'i 

Salts are represented by 

1. Organic salts, found in fruit and vegetables. 

2. Inorga?tic — common salt. 

In addition to these three classes of foods we must place 
Water as necessary to life. 

III. How do these various foods become absorbed into 
the body ? 

The process of digestion is the way in which the food 
which is solid may be brought into a liquid condition and so 
enter the blood. 

Take some lump sugar, show it to the Class as 
a solid, then dissolve it in water. 

Explain that all food must be made soluble. 

Put some starch or a small piece of cooked meat 
into water ; it remains unchanged. 

Ho7v then is this food to be rendered soluble ? 

Our bodies contain various juices that act upon different 
kinds of food, rendering their absorption possible. 

Saliva. The saliva in the mouth turns the starch into a 
kind of sugar which dissolves in water. 

The experiment with the lump sugar shows how 
necessary it is to bite food well in our mouths 
that the saliva may have time to ivork. 



CHAP. XII.] TJie Teaching of Domestic Economy. 289 

Gastric juice. 

The teeth break the meat up into small pieces and when 
it passes into the stomach a juice called gastric juice acts upon 
it, softening the fibres, rendering them soluble and changing 
their nature. 

Bile. 

Drop a S7nall piece of butter into some hot water, 
what happens'^ 

In the same way in the small intestines a juice from the 
liver, called bile, causes the fat to break up into such small 
particles that it can pass into the blood. 

The blood passes all over the body, feeding the tissues and 
renewing the different parts worn away by work and exercise. 

Recapitulation, and Blackboard Sketch. 

{a) The Uses of Food : 

1. It provides materials for growth. 

2. It repairs the waste of the body. 

3. It makes new tissue. 

if) There are three kinds of Food : 

1. Nitrogenous or Flesh-forming. 

2. Non-Nitrogenous. 

3. Salts and water. 

if) I. Each of these varieties is necessary, or loss of 
appetite, with defective nutrition, will ensue. 

2. To nourish the body solid foods must be made liquid : 
first, by mastication ; second, by digestion. 

3. These processes render food soluble and capable of 
being absorbed into the blood. 

B. 19 



290 Domestic Economy. [PT. ii. 



(2) NOTES OF LESSON ON THE PROCESSES 
OF COOKERY. 

§ 100. Aim. To show: 

I. Necessity of cooking. 

II. The functions of cooking. 

III. The chief methods used in preparing food. 

Apparatus. Blackboard : an egg : potatoes, one raw, 
one boiled : some corn-flour : a piece of freshly cooked meat or 
bacon. 

I. In studying the value of food and its use in the body, 
we have seen preparation to be necessary. 

Cooking is the art of preparing food to nourish the body. 
It is carried out by the means of Heat. 

What is the chief sou7'ce of light and heatl 

In old days, and eve?i 7iow in South America, 

beef and other foods were dried by exposure 

to the sun. 
In winter where does our supply of tvarmth 

C07?te from ? 

In most countries the fire takes the place of the sun for 
cooking processes. 

II. II07111 may we arrange the results of cooking 1 

(a) Cooking brings out new flavours. 

Contrast a piece of freshly cooked meat or bacon 
with a piece in a raw^ uncooked condition. 

(b) Makes food digestible. 

Show the difference between a 7'aw potato and 
a boiled floury one. 



CHAP. XII.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 291 

{c) Bursts starch grains. 

Experiinent with some corn-flour and hot water 
arid explain how the grains burst and ru7i 
together^ forming a sticky paste, 

{d) Softens hard substances. 

Refer again to the cooked and uncooked potato. 

(e) Sets albumen. 

Poach an egg in an open pa?t and let the class 
obsei-ve the change that gradually takes place, 
i^f) Kills germs of disease. 

Specify advantage of boiling milk or water. 

III. What are the ustial methods of cooking 1 
Roasting, baking, grilling, boiling, steaming, 
stewing, frying. 

How may we ar?-a?tge these methods of cooking ? 

We notice two kinds of Heat employed. 
{a) Dry heat or exposure to the fire. 
{b) Wet heat or contact with boiling water. 

{a) Processes of Cookery effected by Dry Heat or ra- 
diation. 

Roasting, baking, grilling. 

{b)_ Processes of Cookery effected by Wet Heat or by 
contact with hot water or hot fat. 

Boiling, steaming, stewing, frying. 

Recapitulation, and Blackboard Sketch. 

I. Cooking is the means by which food is prepared so as 
to nourish the body. 

n. It is effected by agency of Heat, {a) Dry Heat. 
{b) Wet Heat. 

III. Its results are as shown above {a) — (/). 

19 — 2 



292 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 



(3) NOTES OF LESSON ON ROASTING, 
BAKING, AND GRILLING. 

§ 1 01. Apparatus. An open pan : roasting jack or 
diagram : an egg. 

What is Roasting ? 

Cooking meat before a bright, clear fire. 

In small houses, baking in a hot oven is generally used 
instead. 

What article of food is largely co7nposed of 
Albumen ? 

In poaching an egg the transparent, sticky, liquid white 
became, by the action of heat, opaque, smooth, solid. Al- 
bumen under the influence of heat sets or coagulates. 

Meat contains Albumen and other Proteids. 

In roasting or baking this must be slightly hardened on 
the outside to form a thin coat or covering to keep in the 
red juices of the meat ; great heat is applied for the first ten 
minutes to effect this and is then reduced. 

What kind of fire is required 1 

The bright, clear fire must be kept up by putting on small 
pieces of coal at the back. 

When roasting is carried on in front of the fire a spit or 
jack is required. 

If possible a jack should be shown and the simple 

mechanism explained. 
After a joint has been before the fire for a few 

minutes ivhat do we find in the tin below ? 

This melted fat, or dripping, is used to baste the meat. 
By basting we mean pouring hot fat every quarter of an 
hour over the joint to prevent it from becoming hard and dry. 



CHAP. XII.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 293 

A joint roasted weighs less than it did when raw, 
ivhy is this? 
Besides the dripping, there is a loss of water in the form 
of steam, altogether about 5 ounces in the pound. 

Only the best joints should be used for roasting and baking. 
Time required for baking and roasting depends on the 
kind of meat : 

Beef and mutton : 20 minutes to the lb. and 20 minutes 

over. 

Veal and pork : 25 minutes to the lb. and 25 minutes over. 

What apparatus is used for baking? 

This tin is made double and the lower one holds water 
to prevent the fat from burning. The upper tin is furnished 
with a stand to prevent the meat from getting sodden in the 
dripping. The baking oven must be well ventilated. 

What is another method of cooking by radiant 
heat? 

The fire for grilling must be clear and smokeless and the 
chop or steak must be turned every two minutes. Grease the 
bars of the gridiron to prevent sticking. 

Points to remember. 

The fire should be bright and clear. 
Only the best joints can be used. 

Recapitulation. 

{a) There are three ways of Cooking by radiant or dry 
heat. 

1. Roasting, before a clear fire. 

2. Baking, in the oven. 

3. Grilling, on clear, hot coals. 



294 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

{b) Meat for roasting is first put near the fire to set the 
outer coating of Proteid matters, then drawn further away. 

{c) Meat loses about 5 ounces in the lb. through, 

1. Melting of the fat — dripping. 

2. Loss of water — steam. 



(4) NOTES OF LESSON ON BOILING 
AND STEWING, 

§ 102. What processes of cookery ai'c effected by wet 
heat ? 

L Boiling is cooking meat or fish in water. 

What substafice resembling the white of egg is 
found in meat and fish ? 

Is the?'e any difference in the effect of cold or 
hot water on Albumen ? 

Repeat here the previous experiment of poaching 
an egg; at the same time mix some white of 
egg ivith cold water and question the children 
as to the different i-esults. 

Albumen dissolves in cold water. 
It coagulates or sets in hot water. 

I?i boiling a piece of mutton should cold or hot 
water be used? 

The hot water hardens the outside Albumen and forms 
a coat to keep in the juices. 



CHAP. XIT.] TJie Teaching of Domestic Economy. 295 

If the meat ivere kept at boiling point the whole 
time, zvhat would be the result? 

Refer to the experiment of poaching the egg. 
Meat simmered slowly should be juicy and tender. 

When the juices are 7'equired to be draivn out, 
as in stewijig or soup-maki?ig, should cold or 
hot ivater be used? 

The cold water dissolves the Albumen and draws out the 
nourishment from the meat. 

If instead of f-esh meat, a piece of salt meat or 
fish is to be cooked, zvhat plan of cooking should 
be adopted? 

Cold or lukewarm water draws out some of the salt. 

The salt hardens the Proteid matters on the surface of the 
meat and the juices are retained. 

Time for boiling is a quarter of an hour to the pound and 
a quarter of an hour over. 

Here let the Class reckon out the time required for : 

1. A piece of mutton for boiling weighing 5 lbs. 

2. A piece of salt beef weighing 7 lbs. 

What is the name of the water in which meat 
has been boiled? 

Pot Liquor, which should be kept for soups and gravies. 

The second process of cooking draws out the juices ; 
what is it called? 

II. Stewing is cooking meat very gently for a long time 
in a covered pan, in moderate heat. 

I7t roasting and boiling what was the action of 
heat Of I the albumen in the meat ? 

In Stewing the juices should be extracted. 



296 Domestic Economy. [PT. ii. 

Should hot or cold wate7' he used in the process ? 

Cold water brought gradually to the boil softens the fibres 
and makes the meat tender. 

This process is the most economical, because 

1. The cheaper part of meat can be used. 

2. Little fire is required. 

What vessel is generally used for stetving ? 
Here show an ordinary stew-pan with tightly fitting lid. 

Everyone does not possess a steiv-pan ; what can 
be used instead? 

An earthenware jar makes an excellent substitute. It should 
be covered over and placed in a pan of boiling water or in 
a slow oven. 

The water must boil, but not the stew. 

N.B. 'Stew boiled is Stew spoiled.' 

Recapitulation, and Blackboard Sketch. 

I. Boiling. 

Fresh Meat should be placed in boiling water for the 
first ten minutes : 

1. To set the albumen. 

2. To keep in the juices. 

Salt Meat may be put on in lukewarm water and brought 
slowly to the boil. 

After the first ten minutes the meat should simmer only. 

Time for boiling : 

\ hour to the lb. and \ hour over. 

Pot Liquor is the name given to the water in which 
meat has been cooked. 



CHAP. XII.] TJie Teaching of Domestic Economy, 297 

11. Stewing is long, gentle cooking in a covered pan 
with a small quantity of liquid. 

1. It draws out the juices. 

2. It makes cheap pieces of meat tasty and nourishing. 

3. It saves time — requires very little attention. 

4. It saves fuel — only a small fire is needed. 



(5) NOTES OF LESSON ON FRYING. 

§ 103. The second process of cooking by wet heat is by 
contact with hot fat. 

What is the name of this method of cooking 1 
Heat some fat in a pan, explain that the splutter- 
ing is dne to the ivater in the fat. 
When the fat is quiet, put in a piece of bread. 
Let the class count 60. 

If the bread is brown at the end of that time the 
fat is hot enough. 
or, 

Point out the faint blue smoke rising all over the 
pan ; this shoivs that the fat is at the right 
heat. 

There are two kinds of frying, known as 

1. Dry Frying. 

2. Wet Frying. 

1. Dry Frying is so called when there is only enough 
fat to cover the bottom of the pan. 

What is fried in this ivay ? 

2. Frying is called " wet " when the stew-pan is about 
half full of fat. 

Rissoles and fish are fried in this way. 



298 Domestic Economy. [PT. ii. 

It is an economical method of frying because the fat can 
be strained and used over again. 

Whe7i meat %vas roasted why was g7'eat heat 
applied for the first ten mifiutes I 

To retain the juices in the process of frying, the food to 
be cooked is covered with flour, batter, or egg and bread 
crumbs. 

Frying is not a method of economical cooking, as only 
the best pieces of meat and fish can be used, and a quick, 
hot fire is needed. 

If this lesson is given last, it is well to recapitulate, ques- 
tioning the various processes from the children. 

Points to remember. , 

1. The fat must be smoking hot. 

2. Food to be fried must be dry. 

3. Things fried must be drained on crumpled paper. 

4. Fat should be strained and poured into a jar when 
finished with. 

Recapitulation : Blackboard Sketch. 

Frying is cooking in hot fat. 
Two kinds of frying : 

1. Dry frying — in a shallow pan with a little fat. 

2. Wet frying — in a deep pan half full of fat. 

Completed Blackboard Sketch. 
I. Cooking is a necessity : 

1. Without cookery civilized nations would starve. 

2. Monotony of method would injure the digestive 
organs. 



CHAP. X 11.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 299 
II. Cooking may be considered under : 



A. The effects of cookery. 
I. To develop new flavours. 



To render food digestible. 
To burst starch grains. 
To set albumen. 
To soften hard substances. 
To kill germs of disease. 

B. Processes by which this is effected : 

1. Radiant Heat : 

Roasting, baking, grilling. 

2. Wet Heat : 

Boiling, steaming, stewing, frying. 

Special Points. 

{a) Albumen coagulates or sets with heat. 
(/;) A high temperature renders it dry, hard and horny. 
{c) Cold water dissolves albumen. 

{d) When the meat juices are to be retained, the albumen 
should be allowed to set and form a coat. 



(6) NOTES OF LESSON ON STARCH. 

§ 104. Aim. To show what Starch is. 
Its use as a Food. 

Apparatus. Blackboard : corn-flour : sugar : water, hot 
and cold : diagrams of starch grains. 

I. Starch is found in most plants, such as wheat — rice — 
potatoes — arrowroot. 



300 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

Have you ever seen starch used? What does it 
look like ? 

This white gUstening powder is made up of numbers of 
tiny granules or grains, each having a different shape, varying 
with the plant to which it belongs. 

Here show diagrams of potato starchy rice starchy 
point out the difference in shape. 

II. Mix some starch with cold water and let it stand. 

What has happened to the starch ? 

We see that starch will not melt or dissolve in cold water. 
It is said to be insoluble. 

Make some paste by pouring boiling water on the 
starch. 

What has happened to the mixture ? 

Thus in warm water thickening is caused by the bursting of 
the walls of the starch cells, which have run together and form 
a paste. 

Therefore, Starch mixed with boiling water becomes 
soluble. 

To 7vhich class of Foods does starch belong? 

In hot countries, such as India, Rice forms the principal 
article of diet, being less heating than fatty heat-givers. 

Melt some sugar in water and contrast it with the 
starch and ivater. 

What is the difference between the two ? 

Sugar is Soluble. 
Starch is Insoluble. 

III. Starchy Foods can be changed into a kind of sugat 
and rendered soluble. 



CHAP. XII.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 301 

1. By Heat — Crust of bread — Biscuit. 

2. By the process of Digestion — in the mouth and 
small intestine. 

Why should starchy food not t>e given to young 
infants ? 

Starch cannot be rendered soluble without the action of a 
certain ferment in the saliva of the mouth. 

This is not present until a child is six months old. 

Starch acted upon by dry heat, such as baking, is more 
soluble, example : 

Biscuit 'twice cooked,' Baked Flour, etc. 
Recapitulation and Blackboard Sketch. 

1. Starch is obtained from Wheat — Rice — Potatoes — 
Sago, and other plants. 

2. It is insoluble in cold water. 

3. When mixed with hot water, the granules swell and 
thicken. 

4. Starch is a Heat-giving Food. 



(7) NOTES OF LESSON ON FATTY FOODS. 

§ 105. Aim. To show: 

1. Their sources. 

2. Their food- value and use in the body. 

Apparatus or Material : Butter : suet : olive oil : linseed : 
hot water. 

I. We saw that Carbonaceous Foods fall into two di- 
visions. 

Question upofi the Foods that fall ivithin each of 
these classes. 



302 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

We now consider the sources from which these Fatty foods 
are derived. 

These sources are : 

{a) Animal, {b) Vegetable. 

Animal Fats may be arranged thus : 

1. Suet, the animal fat generally used, is of two kinds : 

Beef suet — yellow and rich. 
Mutton suet — white and hard. 

2. Lard, a pork product. 

3. Butter, a milk product. 

4. Margarine, an animal fat treated artificially by boil- 
ing and colouring. 

5. Oil, e.g. from the Cod-fish, or Cod-liver oil. 

The above may he obtained by questioning. 

Vegetable Fats are the following : 

These may be obtained by questioning. 

1. Olive oil, from the olive berry. 

2. Linseed oil, from the seed of the Flax plant. 

3. Castor oil, from the Castor oil plant. 

4. Palm oil, cotton-seed oil, etc. 

IL There are two classes of Carbonaceous foods. 
Which of these produces more heat ? 

To illustrate the ans7ver, i-efer shortly to a?iy 
well-known Arctic voyage; describi?ig the foods 
used. 

Make clear the connection betiveen clijnate ajid 
food,. 



CHAP. XII.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 303 

Now before food can nourish the body it must become 
soluble. 

Is Fat soluble ? 

Drop a little fat ittto hot water contained in a 

glass. 
The Class will point out the change in the fat. 
Allow the water to beco?ne cold, and ask for the 
difference in the condition of the fat. 

Fat must be made soluble. 

Mix together fat and soda. 
Result: a soapy substance. 

Fat can therefore be made soluble, by being broken up 
and divided, and so can be absorbed. 

III. In the human body the work is performed by 
{a) The Bile— a juice from the Liver. 
{I)) The Pancreatic Juice. 

We see then that Fat as food 

(i) is rendered soluble by certain juices of the body, 

(2) can then be absorbed by the digestive powers into 
the blood, 

(3) and is a source of heat to the body. 



Recapitulation and Blackboard Sketch. 

Fatty Foods belong to the Carbonaceous or Heat-givers. 

There are two kinds of Fat : 

Animal, such as Suet, Lard, Butter, Margarine, Fish oil. 

Vegetable, such as Olive oil, Linseed oil, Palm oil, etc. 



304 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

Fats and oils are largely eaten in cold countries to give 
heat to the body. 

Fat is rendered soluble by 

1. The Bile from the Liver. 

2. The Pancreatic Juice. 



(8) LESSON ON CLOTHING. 

§ 106. Aim. To show the best kind of Clothing materials. 

Apparatus. New flannel : cocoon of silk and a piece of 
silk : cotton yarn : linen threads. 

Name some of the materials used for clot hi fig. 
IVhich is the one chiefly used in winter ? 
Where does wool come from ? 
At what time of the year is it cut from the sheefs 
back ? 

L Flannel. 

The processes gone through in manufacturing wool into 
flannel are : 

1. Washing — to cleanse thoroughly. 

2. Pressing — to squeeze out the water. 

3. Combing — to get the fibres smooth and straight. 

4. Spinning — twisting into yarn or threads. 

5. Weaving — making up into a piece of material. 

Flannel is : 



White 
Soft 



T • 1 . Illustrate these properties by shoivmg a 

Light y . r n 1 

o, I piece of 7ie7V flannel. 

Warm / 



CHAP. XII.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 305 

II. Silk. 

What material conies next to Wool in non-con- 
ductijig properties ? 

Silk is the only animal textile fabric. 

What is the name of the insect that produces silk 

threads 1 
Question the Class as to whether any of them have 

kept or seen silkworms. 
Show pictures or draiv diagrams of eggs and 
cocoons. Shoiv some raw silk. 

The raw silk is spun into threads. 
Why ai^e threads spun ? 

Experiment : — Let a scholar take a single thread and break 
it— Thread too fine to have any strength — Let tivo girls twist 
several th?'eads into one string. 

Show increased strength. 

The threads are woven into pieces of silk. 

Silk is, 

1. A non-conductor of heat. 

2. Does not shrink. 

III. Cotton. 

What material comes after Flannel and Silk as 
afi article of clothing 1 

Calico is made from the Cotton plant. 

What part of the plant prodiices the Cotton ? 

The seed pod bursts and shows a ball of white threads. 
This is spun and woven like the silk. 

Refer to experiment with silk threads and if 
necessary^ repeat with cotton. 

Shoiv specimens of raw cotton and cotton yarn. 



3o6 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

Calico is, 

1. A good conductor — Bad property for clothing. 

2. Durable. 

3. Washes well. 

4. Does not shrink. 

IV. Linen. 

The next material is Linen. 

Fro7n what plant do we get Linen ? 

Flax has a thin stem and bright blue flowers, the seeds are 
known as Linseed. 

Linen is made from the stem of the plant. 

What is done to Wheat when gathered 'i 

Flax stems are tied in bundles in the same way, soaked in 
water, and the fibres or threads beaten out, the long ones 
separated from the short ones. 

These threads are spun and woven into Linen. 

Refer to the spinning of cotton and silk. 

Take a piece of calico and a piece of linen, compare the 
two, question the Class as to any difference. 

1. Linen is stronger than Cotton. 

2. It is colder than Calico. 

3. Cotton is "fluffy" to the touch. 

4. Linen is smooth. 

Blackboard Sketch. 

Chief materials used for Clothing are, 

I. Flannel — a non-conductor, made from the wool of 
the sheep. 



CHAP. XII.] The TeacJiing of Domestic Econoniy, 307 

2. Silk — made from the threads spun by the silkworm. 

3. Calico — manufactured from the cotton plant. 

4. Linen — made from the stem of the flax plant; a 
good conductor of heat. 

Clothing worn next the skin should be 

1. A non-conductor. 

2. A good absorbent of moisture. 



(9) LESSON ON SOME HYGIENIC RUIES 
OF DRESS. 

§107. Aim. To show : 

1. Necessity of changing Clothes. 

2. Rules for wearing Clothing. 

Apparatus. Blackboard : Diagram of body affected by 

tight clothes : a piece of black and of white material : eau de 

Cologne. 

« 

I. What happens to clothes that have been worn ? 
Underclothes become soiled and dirty from 

1. Contact with the skin. 

2. Perspiration from the body. 

Outer garments get soiled from touching dirty things, from 
smoke, from dust in the air. 

What should be done with soiled clothes ? 

Besides being washed, they should be aired. 

What is meant by airing ? 

Unless clothes are thoroughly dried, they strike cold to the 
body and drive the blood back and a chill ensues. 

20 — 2 



3o8 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

Experiment with some eau de Cologne or salvolatile on 
the back of a warm hand. 

Clothes that are worn by day should not be slept in at 
night. 

All clothing and especially bed-clothes should be hung up 
and exposed to the air. 

II. Are light or dark clothes most worn in stinimer? 

Light clothes take in — absorb — less heat from the sun than 
dark ones, in the winter then we wear dark stuffs. 

III. Tight clothes deform the body. 

What happens to the feet ivhen boots or shoes 
pinch ? 

The feet grow out of shape, and other parts of the body do 
the same. 

Tight lacing presses on the internal organs, such as the 
lungs —breathing apparatus — liver, etc. 

The body gets out of shape and breathing is short and 
difficult. 

Tight garters prevent the blood from flowing properly and 
varicose veins are formed. 



Blackboard. 

1. Underclothing should be frequently changed and 
washed. 

2. All clothing should be aired. 

3. Light clothes are cooler in summer than dark ones. 

4. Tight clothes deform the body. 



CHAr. XII.] The TcacJiing of Domestic Eco7ioiny. 309 



(10) SUMMARY OF LESSONS ON CLOTHING. 

§ 108. Clothing is a Necessity. 

1. Without clothing, there is loss of heat. 

2. Without the protection of clothes, injury to the 
body. 

Clothing. 

a. Keeps i7i the heat of the body. 

b. Keeps out the heat of the sun. 

Kinds of Clothing. 

1. Non-conductors of heat. 

2. Good conductors of heat. 

1. Non-conductors: Fur, Flannel, Silk, Wool. 

2. Good conductors : Cotton, Calico, Linen. 

Special Points to be pressed home : 

a. Underclothing worn next the skin should be a non- 
conductor and absorbent. 

b. Light clothes keep out the heat of the sun. 

c. Tight clothing deforms the body. 

d. Clothes should be frequently changed. 

e. After washing clothing should be thoroughly aired. 



3IO Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 



(11) NOTES OF FOUR CONSECUTIVE LESSONS 
ON VENTILATION. 

Lesson L 
§ 109. Aim. To show: 

1. The necessity for air. 

2. The principles of true ventilation. 

3. The chief systems in use, and how they fulfil those 
principles. 

4. Special points with regard to class-rooms, dwelling- 
houses, etc. 

Apparatus. Blackboard : lime water : tumbler : glass 
tube : clear glass bottle : candle : matches. 

In learning about food values and food prepa- 
ration, what article of cojtsumption have you 
foimd to be most necessary ? 

How does tvater affect digestion and circulatio7i ? 

It plays an important part in each. 

So-called fasting men and women are allowed water, and 
it is this enables them to fast for any length of time. 

But we have a third great Jieed, greater moment by momeiit 
than food or tvater. Food we may do without for three 
weeks ; water we may do without for three days ; but we 
could not live for three minutes without air. 

Respiration, i.e. breathing in and out, takes place 
15 to 17 times a minute ; life ceases if this is not carried out. 

Of what does air consist ? 
Ordinary air consists of: 

Nitrogen, 79 parts, | 

Oxygen, 21 > 100 parts. 

Faint trace carbonic acid gas ) 



CHAP. XII.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 311 

Which of these gases is essential to life ? 

Air from which oxygen is expelled cannot maintain life. 
Example : Drowning is death from oxygen-starvation, 
although water contains some air and therefore some oxygen. 
Fish placed in water recently boiled, die. Why ? 

In 1848 the Londonderry sailed to Liverpool with 200 passengers. 
Bad storm, to ensure safety, captain ordered all passengers below. 

Steerage passengers in very small cabin; door tightly fastened on 
the outside. 

First great discomfort, nothing more. 

Presently to prevent inrush of water to this cabin, captain ordered 
large sheet of tarpaulin to be securely fastened over the entire entrance. 

A scene of frenzy ensued : the wretched prisoners struggled and fought 
in useless efforts to escape. 

The storm drowned the noise of their shrieks. 

When the doors were finally opened 75 already dead, many others 
dying. 

What was the cause 1 

Want of oxyen o?ie cause, but not the chief. 

What other cause ? 

Experiment. Show two filled bottles. 
What difference, if any, between these bottles ? 
Both contain clear, clean water and look alike. 
They look alike, but one contains clear water. 

The other contains clear lime water. 

If possible let the teacher or a scholar, in sight of the Class, hold the 
bottle of water out of a window, pour out the water and at once rapidly 
draw the bottle horizontally through the air and cork it. 

Ask Class what it now contains. 
Air, where from ? Out of doors. 
Add a little lime-water (not half full). 
It now contains lime-water and air. 
Shake vigorously. Any cha?ige visible .? No change. 
Pour lime-water into a tumbler: breathe into it through 
a tube. 



312 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

Any change 1 Lime-water quite milky. 

If a saucer of lime-water stands in a room, with the doors 
and windows closed, occupied by several people, in a few 
hours the lime-water will turn milky in the same way. 

What do these experiments show ? 
Breathed air undergoes a change. 

How can you find out if foods contain starch ? 

As iodine is a test for starch, lime-water is the test for 
carbonic acid gas, the turning of the lime-water milky proves 
the presence of carbonic acid gas. 

Of which gas is there an excess i?i breathed air 
than in ordinary air? 

It has gained carbonic acid gas and lost oxygen during 
respiration. 

Expired air consists of : 

Nitrogen, 80 parts, ) 

Oxygen, 15 V = 100 parts. 

Carbonic acid gas, 5 ) 

Near Naples there is a cave or grotto which contains great quantities 
of carbonic acid gas. Men walking upright may enter and feel little or 
no discomfort. A dog drops instantly unconscious, and if not quickly 
withdrawn soon dies. So too would a man entering on his hands and 
knees. 

What two things does this shoiv ? 

Carbonic acid gas destroys life. 

Carbonic acid gas is much heavier than air. 

I\Fo7c> ca?t you tell the causes of death o?i board 
the Londonderry ? 

1. Insufficiency of oxygen, 

2. Excess of carbonic acid gas. 



CHAP. XII.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 313 

Besides carbonic acid gas, expired air contains organic 
or animal refuse matters proved by experiment to be deadly 
poison. 

These decaying matters are being constantly thrown out, 

A. By the lungs. 

B. In moisture and vapour from the skin. 

Excess of carbonic acid gas charged with organic refuse 
has evil effects even if life is not destroyed. 

It I. Causes languor, giddiness, headache, etc. 

2. Makes the face pale (blood not oxygenated). 

3. Lowers vitality and increases liability to disease. 

Each adult gives out 14 to 19 cubic feet of carbonic acid 
gas besides organic matter in 24 hours. 

What therefore happe?is in dwellings and places^ 

(Concert-halls, theatres, churches, chapels, work-rooms), w/ierc viany 
people gather together? Air rapidly fouls, gets bad. 

Rooms must be ventilated, fresh air brought in. 

Blackboard Sketch. 

Air is necessary to life (because) : 

1. Without air man starves for want of oxygen. 

2, Without change of air, man is poisoned by the 
{a) carbonic acid gas in the air ; {!)) refuse organic matter. 



Lesson II. Ventilation continued. 

§ no. Aim and Apparatus, as in Lesson I. 

What is ventilation ? 
Bringing in fresh air. 



314 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

True ventilation a double function : it must constantly 
supply fresh, pure air and constantly remove used up and 
impure air. 

This is the principle or law of pure ventilation : 

1. Letting in pure air. 

2. Letting out bad air. 

What dijeretice besides impurity is the7'e t>etween 
carbonic acid gas and ordifiary air ? 

Carbonic acid gas is 52 per cent, heavier. 
Where ought the outlets to be? 

Near the floor. 

A good answer if it squares with all the facts. 

Explain that wherever combustion takes place carbon and 
oxygen combine and carbonic acid gas is given out. 

Example. Bright fire burning, ivhere do the gases and 
smoke go ? 

This effect is in obedience to what great natural law ? 
Heat expands air, which becoming lighter ascends. 



What do you feel if you In-eathe into the palms 
of your hands ? 



Heat. 



Why is expired air hot? 

IVhat is the normal temperature of the body ? 

The blood of the inner organs, such as the heart, is even 
a little hotter. 

Expired air comes direct to the lungs from the heart, and 
experiments prove exhaled air at the moment of expiration 
to be no heavier than pure air at teinperature 90° Fahrenheit. 

What is the usual temperature of an oi'ditiary 

divelling room ? 
What then happens to the air 7ve expire ? 
Where should the outlets for it be placed? 



CHAP. XII.] TJie Teaching of Domestic Economy. 315 

Stand on a chair or table in a closed or ill-ventilated room 
containing several people, and the upper air will feel much 
hotter and be much more stuffy. 

Galleries in theatres or churches afford other illustrations. 

If in a room with a fire burning, the windows and doors 
closed, a lighted candle is held in front of the keyhole, or 
by the side of the door, you will see that air rushes in and 
extinguishes the candle or bends flame towards the fire. 

Whyl 

Some of the hot spent air we exhale rises to the ceiling, 
but where there is an open fire-place much is sucked into 
the strong draught of heated gases passing up the chimney, 
fresh cold air rushing in at every crevice to supply the place 
of the hot air withdrawn. 

Where should the inlets bel 

Inlets near the floor would be the most effective, because 
fresh pure air rushing in at the lower part of a room creates 
a stronger draught and helps more rapidly to drive up and 
out the impure air. 

Can you tell me any reason why inlets should 
not be near the floor ? 

Inlets must not be so low as to cause draughts and chills 
to the feet and body. 

The same great principle — hot air rising and cooler air 
rushing in to take its place — causes the circulation of the 
air, breezes and winds, in nature's great ventilating system. 

Blackboard Sketch. 
True ventilation has a double action : 
It I. Brings in fresh pure air. 
2. Drives out spent bad air. 
Inlets about 5 feet above the floor. 
Outlets near the ceiling. 



3i6 Domestic Economy. [pt. ii. 



Lesson III. Ventilation conthmed. 

§ III. Apparatus and Aim, as in Lesson I. 

Ventilation is of two kinds : 

1. Natural. 

2. Artificial. 

Natural Ventilation is produced by the ordinary and 
natural interchange of air when windows, doors, and other 
openings are utilized. 

Artificial Ventilation is produced by the help of 
heating apparatus or mechanical contrivances either for forcing 
air in, or sucking it out. 

There is no hard and fast distinction between the two, 
but the nearer a system conforms to Natural Ventilation, the 
simpler and more effective it is as a rule. 

Some chief features are : 

A. By the windows. 

1. Costless ventilation. 

Raise the lower sash, fill open space by block of wood : air enters 
between the two sashes, the upward direction imparted dilTusing it steadily 
through the room without perceptible draught. 

2. Window itself can, and should be, thrown widely 
open at intervals to flush the room. 

3. Lower the top sash and fasten zinc gauze across the 
open space. Air is diffused through gauze and an upward 
current admitted between the sashes. 

4. An upper pane of a window is hinged to fall forward 
with side shields of glass to prevent down draught. Current 
is upwa7'ds. Often used in schoolrooms, churches, etc. Or 
upper pane of a window may be pivoted to swing like a 
looking-glass, but this is draughty in windy weather. 



CHAP. XII.] TJie Teaching of Domestic Economy. 317 

5. Louvre Ventilators. 

Parallel slats of glass (like a Venetian blind) inclined up- 
wards to direct the current of air. 

Windows are mainly serviceable as inlets^ with which 
separate exits near the ceiling should be combined. 

B. By the walls. 

1. Tobin's Tubes. Circular or oblong tubes 5 or 
6 feet high, fixed against the inside wall of a room. 

Outside air enters the tube through a grating in the wall at the floor 
level, current flows upward and diffuses gradually ; there is little or no 
draught. Size and number of tubes should depend on the size of the 
room, and number of persons usually occupying it. 

This is a good system for schools. 

2. Sheringham's Valves. 

An iron box fixed in the wall, the back of the box a 
grating through which the outside air enters freely. In front 
a valve on the same principle as a hinged window pane. 

C. By ceiling and chimney. 

1. Ceiling outlets, by which hot, foul air enters a 
shaft leading sideways to the open air, or a vertical shaft 
through the roof surmounted by a cowl to prevent down 
draught through the wind. 

2. The chimney forms the best means of escape for 
foul air. 

Every room should have an open fire-place. A bedroom 
chimney should never be closed or boarded. 

There is an up-current as a rule, even when there is 
no fire. 

When a fire is burning, 5000 to 15000 cubic feet per 
hour pass up the chimney, which thus becomes a powerful 
extraction shaft. 



3i8 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

3. Arnot's Valve. Exit into chimney flue. 

This consists of an iron box fixed into the wall of the chimney, near 
the ceiling, and fitted with a light metal flap to swing open towards the 
chimney, but not towards the room; thus providing an exit for foul air 
to pass into and off through the chimney. 

Disadvantage. The metal valve is noisy in windy weather. 

4. Boyle's Ventilator. This is on the same prin- 
ciple, but substituting thin talc or mica plates for the metal 
flap. 

Disadvantage. The plates are almost too sensitive, they 
are affected by the least current and are not very durable. 



Blackboard Sketch. 

Ventilation is of two kinds : 

1 . Natural. 

2. Artificial. 

1. Natural Ventilation is produced by the ordinary 
and natural interchange of air when windows, doors, and other 
openings are utilized. 

2. Artificial Ventilation : by means of hot air or 
mechanical force. 

Chief Systems. 

Inlets. Doors and windows. 

Hinged window panes. 

Louvre ventilators. 

Tobin tubes. 

Sheringham valves. 
Outlets. Through the ceilings and roofs : 

Arnot's valve, conducting foul air into chimney 
flue. 

Boyle's ventilator. 



CHAP. XII.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 319 



Lesson IV. Ventilation continued. 

§ 112. Aim and Apparatus, as in Lesson L 

Special points. 

Hoiv is air in our rooms spoilt by other means 
than respiration ? 

Every form of combustion uses up oxygen, increases car- 
bonic acid gas, therefore air is spoilt by : 

1. Fires used in heating rooms. 

2. Candles, lamps, gas jets, used in lighting rooms. 

Fires withdraw much oxygen, give out much carbonic acid 
gas, but most of the latter passes up the chimney without 
fouling the room. 

Four candles or one lamp spoil as much air as tivo men. 

Each gas burner spoils as much air as from 3 to 6 men. 
This must be remembered in ventilating rooms. 

The lighting and heating of rooms increase the difficulty 
of ventilation, except in the case of open fire-places, which 
create a strong draught and carry off the carbonic acid gas. 

What is mea?it by the cubic space of a room ? 

The length, breadth and height multiplied together. 

3000 cubic feet of air per head per hour is a very liberal 
allowance, though less than yjoth part of the allowance pro- 
vided by nature in the open air. 

If 1000 cubic feet of space were allotted per head, then 
the air should be entirely changed three times per hour. 

How would you find the floor space of a room ? 

The length multiplied by the breadth gives the floor space 
or superficial feet of a room. 



320 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

Where space is limited, as in class rooms, frequent and 
complete change of air by ventilation and flushing must be 
ensured. 

The amount of carbonic acid gas exhaled increases as the 
human being advances from 8 to 30 years of age. 

It is less in a child, but : 

1. Respiration is more rapid: more oxygen is needed in 
a given time. 

2. The brain in exercise requires more oxygen to do 
its work. 

3. Children are more liable to infectious diseases than 
adults and a free supply of oxygen helps to destroy the 
micro-organisms of such diseases. 

4. Amongst the poor, persons and clothes are frequently 
not washed often enough, and so aid in polluting the air. 

Bedrooms. 

1. Draw the supply of fresh air direct from the open air, 
and not from the vitiated air of the house through the open 
door. 

2. Open the windows in the early morning to flush out 
the impurities accumulated in the air during the night, leave 
them freely open during the day. 

3. The incoming air should not pass direct towards the 
bed. 

4. Avoid crowding sleeping or living rooms with fur- 
niture : each piece decreases space available for air. 

Why should beds be stripped as soon as vacated^ 
and night garments left unfolded for some little 
tifne while the bedroom windotvs are still ope?i ? 



CHAP, xii] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 321 

Blackboard. Special Points. 

A. Lighting and heating make ventilation more difficult 
by: 

ia) Diminishing oxygen. 

if)) Increasing carbonic acid gas. 

B. Furniture lessens air space. 

C. Veiitilation in schools is especially necessary : 
T. Cubic capacity is limited. 

Confinement long. 

Respiratory vital processes are rapid. 

Children more Hable to infection. 

Children often neglected in person and clothing. 



Rub out the blackl)oarcl sketch and give the Class the following 
questions to be answered verbally or (preferably) in writing. 

A. Where should impure air outlets be placed^ and ivhy ? 

B. A man holding a child of 2 years old by the hand, 
walks into the grotto already named. 

What would you expect to happen to each, and why ? 

C. Give the reasons why it is healthier to sleep on a 
bed 2 feet from the floor than : 

{a) Upon a mattress on the floor. 

{b) In a hammock swung near the ceiling, 

D . In ivhat way do lighting and heating affect ventilation ? 

E . Give the cubic feet of air and the floor space in : 

1. A room 18 feet long; 10 feet wide ; 12 feet high. 

2. A room 10 feet long ; 8 feet wide ; 27 feet high. 

B, 21 



322 Domestic Economy. [pt. 1 1. 

Completed Blackboard Sketch. 

I. Air a necessity : 

1, Without air, oxygen starvation. 

2. Without change of air, carbonic acid gas and refuse 
poisoning. 

II. True Ventilation a double process : 

1. Brings in fresh pure air. 

2. Drives out spent foul air. 

Governing Law. 

1. Hot air rises — Outlets through ceiling at highest 
point. 

2. Cold air descends — Inlets 5 feet above the floor. 

III. A. Kinds of Ventilation. 

1. Natural — by free passage of air through /;/- and 
Outlets. 

2. Artificial — by use of hot air or mechanical force. 

B. Chief Systems. 

Inlets. Doors and windows. 

Hinged panes. 

Louvre ventilators. 

Tobin's tubes. 

Sheringham's valves. 
Outlets. Exits through ceiHng and roof. 

Arnot's valves. 

Boyle's ventilators. 

IV. Special Points. 

{a) Lighting and heat affect ventilation. 
{fi) Furniture lessens the air space. 



CHAP. XII.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 323 
{c) Importance of ventilation in schools. 



Cubic space limited. 

Confinement long. 

Respiration rapid. 

Brain in work needs more oxygen. 

Children more liable to infection. 

Children often neglected in person and clothing. 



(12) NOTES OF A LESSON ON THE CHOICE AND 
CARE OF LAUNDRY UTENSILS'. 

§ 113. Class. Standard V. 

Number. 14. 

Average Age. 13 years. 

Previous Knowledge. 

1. Such facts as they may have acquired at home. 

2. Facts gathered by observation. 

Educational Aims. 

1. To train the powers of observation. 

2. To exercise the memory. 

Practical Aim. 

1. To teach the Class the best kind of utensils to buy. 

2. How to take care of them that they may last as long 

as possible. 

^ The Notes would be drawn up in this method by an advanced 
student. The questions, etc., are omitted, the outhnes of the lesson only 
are given. 

21 2 



324 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 



Materials. 




Utensils. 


I. 


Cloths for washing 


and 


I. 


Two enamelled bowls. 




drying. 




2. 


China. 


2. 


Dusters. 




3- 


Wooden tubs. 


3- 


Scrubbing-brush. 




4- 


Irons and stands. 


4- 


Brick-dust. 




5- 


Spoons and knives. 


5- 


Turpentine. 




6. 


Clothes-line and pegs. 


6. 


Paraffin. 




7- 


Mangle, wringer, cop- 


7- 


Small piece of dripp 


ing. 




per, and wooden 


8. 


Brown paper. 






tubs. 



> 



Notes. 

1. The above-mentioned utensils will be neatly ranged 
under the table, and a child will stand by the teacher and put 
them on the table, as named by the rest of the Class. 

2. The copper and wooden tubs will be cleaned at 
Practice Class only by the methods stated at the Demon- 
stration. 

3. Specimens of all other utensils will be cleaned by the 
girls. 

Purpose. 

Tell the Class that they are going to 
learn how to choose laundry utensils, and 
how to take care of them. The child will 

Preparation. P^°^"^^ ^^^^ ^^ 

., , ^, , 1 named by the 

Ask what utensils the Class has been 



in the habit of using at laundry lessons. 
Presentation. 

I. State that enamelled bowls are 
very suitable, as they do not break if 
allowed to slip through wet fingers. 



Class. 



CHAP. XII.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 325 



Wash one in a bowl of soapy water : call Show rusty 

attention of Class to chips and so elicit bowl and article 
the reason for wiping dry to avoid rust. stained by it. 

2. State that china bowls are usually 
deeper than enamelled ones, hence are 
more suitable for making starch. From 
previous knowledge of starch-making elicit 
the reason. 

3. State that wooden tubs should be 
scrubbed with soap and warm water, 
never with soda^ for soda (i) removes 
paint, (2) makes plain wood a bad colour. 
State that clean water should be left in 
unpainted tubs to prevent shrinkage. 



4. State that irons in sizes from i 
to 4 are the most useful and elicit the 
reason for keeping them very clean. 
Wash one iron in strong soda-water, dry, 
and polish with brick-dust. State that 
when put away, irons should be greased 
and wrapped in brown paper. Elicit that 
all irons must be similarly treated. 

5. Elicit reasons for using wooden 
spoons for stirring and iron spoons for 
measuring. Wash one of each before the 
Class. 

6. State that clothes-lines and pegs 
must be frequently washed. Children 
name consequences of dirty ones being 
used. Elicit that pegs should be made 
of wood, no metal. 



Show sizes. 



Treat one in 
this way. 
Show specimens. 



Show clothes 
with dirty line 
marks. 



7- 



State rules for care of a mangle. 



326 



Domestic Economy. 



[PT. II. 



8. Explain the method of cleaning 
the copper and wringers, eliciting the 
action of paraffin on the copper and 
turpentine on the rubber of wringers. 

Association. 

By calling up past experience, elicit 
that otherwise good work is sometimes 
spoilt by want of care and cleanliness of 
utensils. Children will suggest cases, e.g. 
(i) clothes soiled by being put over the 
edge of a dusty tub, (2) clothes spoilt by 
dirty irons, etc., hence 

Generalization. 

Deduce that all laundry utensils must 
be kept as clean as possible and state 
that the best quality which can be af- 
forded should be bought, for good things 
if taken care of last much longer than 
things of an inferior quality. 

Application. 

Girls should never take it for granted 
that utensils are clean, for dust and smuts 
are constantly settling. Therefore ivipe 
every utensil before use^ to ensure clean 
work. 



Write Black- 
board summary as 
a Recapitulation. 

Write prices 
on the board. 



Blackboard Summary. 
Choice and Cai'e of Laundry Utensils. 



Utensil. 


Price. 


Care of utensil. 


Enamelled Basins. 


^d. to r/-. 


Wash and dry thoroughly. 


China ,, 


2^/. to dd. 


Wash and dry. 



VErjT\LATOR 



Heati-ng 
Chamber 





Coals 




1 


































Ba3<^me 2^ 



Reproduced by permission. 



Laundry Centre — Primai' 



DAr>]DB04 
FOR Ir 



RO 

ONS 



NGE 



GA5 



,.LOTHi 

Chest 



DRESSE.R 



Copper 



Demowstration 
Table 




DE,SK5 



Wash Tufjs i/vith Trestles 



••Sheet iron Shelf with 
Brackets to cARf^y Gas 
Ring for Starch Kettle: 



Ground Tloor Plan 



School Laundry Class. 



A. P. I. COTTERELL, F.S.I. 190O. 

[To follow page 326. 



CHAP. XII.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 327 



Wooden tubs. 


From 2/-. 


Scrub with warm water and 
soap. 


Irons. 


9^. upwards. 


Wash with soda-water and 
polish with brick-dust. 


Iron stands. 


3//. to (id. 


Wash occasionally. 


Mangle. 


30/- and upwards. 


Unscrew and cover when not 
in use. 


Wringer. 


7/6 and upwards. 


Rub rollers with turpentine. 
Wash afterwards. 


Spoons. 
Knives. 


id. to 4</. [ 
From dd. 


Wash frequently. 




APPENDIX. 



Appended will be found a Syllabus of the Household 
Management Course, a course for which the Board of Educa- 
tion now gives a grant and which will in due time supplement 
the isolated cookery and laundry lessons given in many schools 
and centres. This especial syllabus is printed here by the kind 
permission of the Lady Superintendent of the Bristol School 
Board. The course is intended to cover three years, and 
students of Domestic Economy will be glad to learn how this 
scheme has been found to work in with the ordinary school 
work. 

The hundred hours for this subject demanded by the Code 
seemed at first sight a condition not easily to be fulfilled, but 
it will be shown that this is not the case in reality. For some 
years past, since cookery became a grant-earning subject, the 
Domestic Economy and the Cookery lessons have overlapped 
each other. Now that a block grant is given, the teaching of 
the former subject may with advantage be omitted from the 
school curriculum, leaving between 50 and 60 hours free to be 
devoted to household management and to be transferred to the 
latter course given by the same teacher. This at once does away 



328 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

with the difficulty of meeting the hundred hours. The second 
stumbling-block seemed to be the time the children would have 
to be out of school, but the lessons can be arranged, at any 
rate for Standard V, at a cookery centre so that they need never 
leave the building. The classes are planned to extend over the 
whole school year and may be arranged as follows on four days 
a week, Friday being left free for the making up of lessons and 
the filling in of registers. 

Standard V, 54 girls. This set goes straight to the centre 
in time for 9 a.m. Prayers 9 to 9.5. Registration ; then follows 
a demonstration lasting \\ hours until 10.15. The 54 are 
divided into three sets of 18, known respectively as A, B and C. 
At 10.15 eighteen girls remain for a practice class until 12, 
making if hours, while the rest go back to their ordinary 
school work. In the afternoon Set B practise from 2 to 3.15, 
and Set C from 3.15 to 4.30. The following week Set B stay 
for the morning practice, and so on until all make up an equal 
number of hours. The first course for Standard V divided as 
above lasts 6 months. Then comes a course of housewifery 
lasting 3 months, including scullery work and thrift following, 
the same division of girls and the last three months is devoted 
to home nursing on the same plan. Where practicable the 
home nursing for Standard V may be divided and half the time 
given to laundry work. 

Standards VI and VII may be worked on the same lines, 
only laundry work must be included and the course is more 
advanced in each subject. If a scheme be drawn up for one 
year only, laundry work must be included. Grants for cookery 
and laundry may be earned respectively even if the whole scheme 
be not carried out. A glance at the syllabus will show what an 
important step in advance it is over the old method of teaching 
cookery for 40 hours. The scheme follows the line laid 
down in the Code for 1889 that the lessons should be progres- 
sive and is drawn up on a sound educational basis. Education 
has been defined as a "preparation for complete living." We 



CHAP. XII.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 329 

have here a set of lessons which, if intelligently taught on the 
one side and regularly attended on the other, may hope to 
render the girls of England fit to take their place as the wives 
and mothers of the future and render the home a successful 
rival to the public-house and beer-shop. 



Courses of Instruction in Household Management, 
Cookery, and Laundrywork*. 

Synopsis of Syllabus of Three Years' I?istructio?i in Household 
Management {combining Practical Cookery, Laundrywork, 
and Houseivifery with Nofjie lYursing) at Centres. 

Junior Stage — Standards 5 & 6. 

Cookery section — Standard 5 {Time, 6 months). 

Care and cleaning of utensils, use of balance, clock, ther- 
mometer. Cookery principles and primary methods illustrated 
by simple dishes. The choice and cost of materials. Homely 
measures. Simple tests for discovering temperature of oven, 
etc. 

Houseivifery section — Standard 5 ( Time, 3 months). 

Choice and cost of cooking utensils for a working man's 
home. Care and cleaning of scullery. How to furnish a 
kitchen. Cleaning a kitchen. Combustion and fire lighting. 
Cleaning flues and grate. Laying and lighting fire. Construc- 
tion of sink. Care and cleaning of sink. Disposal of kitchen 
refuse. Thrift. Using up scraps. Forethought. Planning 

* By kind permission. 



330 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

meals. Marketing. Choice of Food. Season foods. Storage. 
Laying the table. Cleaning plated forks and spoons, etc. 

Home Nursing section — Standard 5 {Time, 3 months). 

Invalids' diet, etc. Invalid dishes. Simple remedies for 
common ailments. Poultices, gargles, fomentations. Con- 
valescents' diet. Dishes suitable for a convalescent. Infants 
and children's diet. Babies' food. Suitable dinners for young 
children. Laying Invalid's tray. 

Laundrywork section— Standard 6 {Time., 3 months). 

Care and cleaning of utensils. Management of fire. Pro- 
perties of materials used in Laundrywork. Disinfecting and 
removing stains. Steeping, washing, boiHng, starching and 
ironing clothes. Pegging out. Airing. 

Housewifery section — Standard 6 (Time, 3 7nonths). 

Practical housework, including daily and weekly bedroom 
and parlour work, etc. Artificial light and care of lamps, etc. 
Ventilation. Marketing and preparing Cottage Dinners. Thrift. 
Washing and mending clothes. 



Senior Stage — Standards 6 & 7. 

Cookery section — Standard 6 {Time., 6 months). 

Functions of food. Cost, purchase and preparation of 
nourishing meals. More advanced dishes illustrating over 
again the primary methods taught in the Elementary course. 
Constituents and dietary value of the varied food stuffs. 
Digestion of albumen, starch, fat. Making preserves. Vege- 
tarian dishes. Home-made bread. Dishes suitable for invalids 
and young children. 



CHAP. XII.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 331 



Housewifery section — Standard 7 {Time, 3 months). 

Choosing a house or lodgings. Choice and cost of furni- 
ture. Drainage. Ventilation. Personal Cleanliness. Skin. 
Hair. Baths. Practical housework, including Spring and 
Autumn cleaning. Preparing Cottage dinners. Washing and 
mending clothes. 



Laimdryivork section — Standard 7 {Time^ 3 months). 

Use of Clothes. Structure and function of the skin. 
Source, nature and treatment of varied clothing materials. 
Source and properties of materials used in Laundrywork. 
Washing linen, woollen, cotton prints, muslins and laces. 
Starching and stiffening processes. Ironing and goffering. 
Polishing. 



Home Nursing section — Standard 7 {Time, 3 nionths). 

Qualifications of a good nurse. Care of the patient. 
Arrangement of the bedroom furniture. Changing sheets. 
Bedrests. Invalid Cookery. Common ailments and their 
remedies. Bandaging. Poultices. Fomentations. Practical 
Housework. 



Housewifery section — Stafidard 7 {Time, 3 months). 

General structure and functions of the human body. The 
Laws of health. Fresh Air. Sunshine. Wholesome diet. 
Sensible clothing. Personal Cleanliness. Work and exercise. 
Rest and recreation. Thrift. Savings Banks. Building 
Societies. Clubs. Practical Housework. 

The 3 years' course is divided into two stages : — {a) Junior 
(Standards 5 & 6), and {b) Senior (Standards 6 &: 7). 



332 



Domestic Economy. 



[PT. II. 



Division of Time. 



Junior Stage : — 

Cookery \ year. 

Laundrywork \ ,, 

Housewifery \ ,, 

Home Nursing \ „ 

Senior Stage : — 

Cookery \ „ 

Laundrywork |^ „ 

Housewifery J ,, 

Home Nursing J „ 



3 years. 



Complete 3 years' course :- 



Food and Cookery 
Clothing & Laundry- 
work 
Housewifery 
Home Nursing 



year. 



2 »5 



3 years. 



Analytical Syllabuses of Thi'ce Years' Instruction in Household 
Management {combining Practical Cookery^ Houseivifery 
and Laundrywork) at Centres. 

N.B. — The course is divided into two stages, each representing 
eighteen months' work, viz. '-—{a) Junior Stage — Standards 
5 & 6, {b) Senior Stage — Standards 6 & 7. Each stage is 
further subdivided into sections representing graduated 
courses of lessons in Cookery, Laundrywork and House- 
wifery with Home Nursing. Each section concludes with 
an Examination — Oral, Written, and Practical. 



Junior Stage — Standards 5 & 6. 

Standard 5. 

Section i — Cookery. 



Lesson 



Qualifications of a good Cook; Cleaning Cookery utensils 
and washing dishes. Scrubbing. Methods and agents 
suitable for an Artisan's home. 



CHAP, xil] The TeacJmig of Domestic Economy. 333 

Lesson 

2. Use of scales and weights. Weighing potatoes, rice, 

flour, etc. Potatoes boiled in their skins. Baked 
potatoes. 

3. Use of clock and thermometer. Rules for choosing 

meat. Roast beef. Boiled or steamed potatoes. 
Gravy. 

4. Construction and management of oven. Scones. Baking 

powder. Gravy browning. 

5. Bread made with yeast. Small seed (or currant) cake. 

6. Rules for choosing and boiling meat. Boiled mutton 

and root vegetables. Sauce. 

7. Milk puddings. Eggs. Rice pudding. Poached egg on 

toast. 

8. Principles of pastry making. Fruit pie or fruit turnovers. 

9. How to choose pork. Rules for cooking pork. Roast 

pork. Boiled greens. Baked and boiled potatoes. 
10. Frying. Batter making. Yorkshire pudding. Pancakes. 

Browned crumbs (using up crusts). 
.11. Rules for choosing fish. Fried fish. Homely measures. 

Simple tests for discovering temperature of oven, etc. 

12. Boiling and steaming. Suet puddings. 

13. Soup making. Lentil soup. Vegetables. 

14. Stewing. Irish stew. Fruit stewed in the oven. 

15. How to choose bacon. Fried liver and bacon. Scrap 

bread pudding. 

16. Using up the remains of a joint: — rendered fat, bone 

stock, gravy, cottage pie. 

17. Clarifying fat. Vegetables. 

18. Rules for grilling and broiling. Grilled or broiled chops. 

Potato soup. 

19. Making porridge, tea, coffee, and cocoa. 

[ Revision. 

21. J 

22. Examination. 



334 Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

Section 2 — Housewifery. 
Lesson 

1. Importance of cleanliness in the home. Washing dishes, 

glasses, etc. Cleaning a scullery. 

2. Dust, its composition. How to choose and purchase 

brushes and cleaning materials. Sweeping and dusting. 
Cleaning plated goods. 

3. Construction and management of stove. Cleaning flues 

and grate. Laying and lighting a fire. Average cost 
of sticks and coal. Cleaning boots. 

4. Choice and cost of cooking utensils for a working man's 

home. Cleaning a kitchen. 

5. How to furnish a kitchen (with cost). Disposal of 

kitchen refuse. Laying the table. 

6. Thrift. Using up scraps. Stock pot. Cheap soups. 

7. Rules for cold meat cookery. Dinner of re-cooked meat. 

8. Forethought. Planning meals. Re-cooked fish. Col- 

cannon. 

9. Marketing. Choice of food. Season foods. Any cheap 

seasonable dishes. 
10. Storage and preservation of food. Tinned foods. Any 
tinned meat dishes, and jam or marmalade. 



Section 3 — Home Nursing. 
Lesson 

1. How infants should be held and carried. Suitable diet 

for infants. Preparing babies' food. Care and cleaning 
of feeding bottles. 

2. The care of invalids. Rules for invalid cookery. Beef- 

tea, toast, lemonade. 

3. Serving invalids' meals. Steamed custard, milk jelly and 

barley water. Laying an invalid's tray. 

4. Suitable dietary for convalescents. Steamed fish or chop. 

Invalid cake. 



CHAP. XII.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 335 

Lesson 

5. Suitable dietary for young children. Mutton Broth, 

Vegetables, Milk Pudding. Fruit. 

6. Revision. 

7. Common ailments and their remedies : — Colds and sore 

throats. Gruel, linseed tea and gargles. 

8. Common ailments continued : — headache, toothache, 

earache, bruises and sprains. Bandaging. 

9. How to treat scalds, burns and cuts. Bandaging. 

10. Boils, gatherings and inflammation. Bread Poultices. 

Linseed Poultices. Hot fomentations. 

11. Examination. 



Standard 6. 

Section 4 — Laundryivork. 
Lesson 

1. Preparations for washing day. Use and care of utensils. 

Hard and soft water. Use of soap, soda and Ammonia. 
Their average cost. Making melted soap. 

2. Use of melted soap and vinegar. Washing flannels, 

woollens and stockings. Rules for hanging and drying 
clothes. 

3. Disinfecting and purifying clothes. Use of salt, sanitas, 

and blue. Washing handkerchiefs. Management of 
fire and irons. Arrangement of ironing table. Ironing 
handkerchiefs. 

4. Removing tea, fruit, and iron mould stains. Use of 

simple agents. Washing body linen and bed linen. 
Pegging out. 

5. Sprinkling and ironing body and bed linen. Airing 

clothes. 

6. Stiffening agents. Use of starch, borax, and tallow. 

Making clear starch. Washing and starching prints and 
muslins. 



336 Domestic Economy. [PT. Tl. 

Lesson 

7. Ironing prints and muslins. Washing collars and cuffs. 

8. Cold water starching. Use of turpentine. Making cold 

water starch. Starching and ironing collars and cuffs. 

9. Washing table linen. Starching and ironing collars and 

cuffs. 

10. Ironing table linen. Revision. 

11. Examination. 

Section ^—Housewifery. 
Lesson 

1. Importance of cleanliness in the home. Order and 

method in the daily work. Daily routine. Making a 
bed and other daily work. 

2. Rules for choosing a house or lodgings. Ventilation. 

Daily housework. 

3. Artificial light. Candles, lamps, gas. Best kind of lamp. 

How to extinguish fire caused by lamp. Cleaning and 
trimming lamps. Daily housework. 

4. Thrift. How it may be shown in marketing and in the 

planning and preparation of meals and in the washing 
and mending of clothes. Daily housework. 

5. Special weekly work in the house. Cleaning materials. 

Making furniture polish. Preparing rooms for weekly 
cleaning. 

6. Drainage. Care of drains. Construction of sinks. Weekly 

housework. 

7. Water supply. Cleaning water cistern. ' Weekly house- 

work. 

8. Care and cleaning of bathrooms. Hairtidies. Washing 

brushes. 

9. Personal cleanliness. Skin. Hair. Washing a sponge. 

10. Choice and cost of cottage furniture. 

1 1 . Examination. 



CHAP. XII.] The Teaching of Domestic Economy. 337 

Senior Stage — Standards 6 & 7. 

Standard 6. 

Section i — Food and Cookery. 
Lesson 

1. Food: its functions. Classification based on functions. 

Milk as an example of "perfect" food. Proportions 
for milk puddings. Rice and sago puddings. Verifying 
homely measures. 

2. Yeast : its action in bread making. Brown bread and 

white bread. Verifying simple tests for discovering 
temperature. 

3. Constituents of food. Classification based on con- 

stituents. Roast meat, gravy, Yorkshire pudding. 

4. A simple account of digestion (mouth, stomach, and 

intestines) and the digestive fluids. Solubility of sugar. 
How it is assimilated. Cheap cakes. 

5. Digestion of starchy foods. Why they need thorough 

cooking. Cornflour mould. Cup of arrowroot. Arrow- 
root pudding. 

6. Albumen and its near relations. Digestion of Albumen. 

Poached egg. Grilled chop or steak. Boiled haricot 
beans. 

7. How fat and oils are digested. Fried or boiled bacon. 

Salad. 

8. Factors which determine the dietary value of foods. 

Discussion upon the dietary value of familiar dishes. 
Stewed tripe. Welsh rarebit. 

9. Suitable dinners for outdoor and manual workers. Hot 

pot, and suet puddings ; or, Exeter stew and savoury 
balls. 
10. Suitable dinners for sedentary workers. Boiled or steamed 
fish and sauce. Stewed fruit. 

B 22 



33^ Domestic Economy. [PT. II. 

Lesson 

11. Rules for pastry making. Beef-steak pie. Syrup tart. 

12. Revision. 

13. 1 The economy and dietary value of soups and broths, and 

14. J of leguminous foods. Dietary value of fresh vegetables 

and fresh fruit. Fruit pie or fruit pasties. Stock, bone 
soup, Scotch broth, vegetable soups. 

15. Cheese cookery, and revision of the dietary value of 

cheese. Cheese and potato pudding. Potatoes cooked 
in their skins. 

16. Beverages. Tea, coffee, and cocoa. Breakfast rolls or 

biscuits or scones. 

17. The principles of meat cookery. Boiled salt meat or 

sheep's head. Vegetables. 

18. Use and abuse of condiments. Hashed meat and mashed 

potatoes. 

19. Rules for cooking vegetables. Some vegetarian dishes. 

20. Revision of the main processes of digestion. Beef-steak 

pudding. 

21. Revision of suitable dietary for different occupations. 

Cornish pasties or sausage rolls. 

22. Examination. 

Standard 7. 

Section 2 — Housewifery. 
Lesson 
T. How to choose a house or lodgings. Choice and cost 
of furniture. Examination of furniture in the centre. 
Daily housework. 

2. Management of income and expenditure. Food allow- 

ance. Proportionate cost of meals. Marketing and 
preparing cottage dinners. Any housework. 

3. The housewife as organiser. Daily and weekly routine. 

Preparing rooms for weekly cleaning. 



CHAP, xil] TJie Teaching of Domestic Economy. 339 

Lesson 

4. Cleanliness in the home. Dust : its source, nature and 

dangers. Cleaning walls and ceilings. Washing brushes. 

5. Importance of Ventilation, and simple methods of 

securing it. Any weekly housework. 

6. The functions and structure of the skin. Personal 

cleanliness. Cleaning a bathroom and other weekly 
housework. 

7. The use of clothes. Care and cleaning of clothing. Hints 

for washing day. Any housework, including washing 
and mending clothes. 

8. Management of spring and autumn cleaning. Preparation 

for special cleaning. 

9. How to guard against moth and damp. Turning out 

drawers and cupboards. Cleaning skins and furs. 

10. Drainage. Flushing and Cleaning Pipes. Special House- 

work. 

11. Examination. 

Section 3 — Clothing and Laundryivork. 

Lesson 

1. Sources of hard and soft water. Action of water on soap. 

How hard water may be softened. Flannels and 
woollens : their source and nature. Action of different 
degrees of heat upon them. Washing flannels and 
woollens. 

2. Soap : its composition and manufacture. Cotton as a 

material for clothing. Washing bed and body clothes. 
Ironing handkerchiefs. 

3. Linen as a material for clothing. Starch : its manufacture 

and use. Washing table linen. Making clear starch. 
Ironing underclothing. 

4. Choice and cost of laundrywork utensils for a working 

man's home. Washing collars, cuffs and fronts. Ironing 
table linen. 

22 — 2 



340 Domestic Ecottomy, [PT. II. 

Lesson 

5. Rules for starching and glossing linen. Starching, iron- 

ing, and polishing collars, cuffs and fronts. Making 
gum water. 

6. Action of Alkalies on colours. Washing white and 

coloured muslins, silks and lace. Ironing silks. 

7. Revision of theory — lessons i — 3. Washing collars, 

cuffs and fronts. Ironing muslin. Goffering lace. 

8. Revision of theory — lessons 4 — 6. Washing a blouse. 

Starching, ironing and polishing collars, cuffs and 
fronts. 

9. Revision of theory — Junior stage, section 4, lessons 3 and 

4. Ironing a blouse. Washing a shirt. 

10. General revision. Starching, ironing and polishing a 

shirt. 

1 1 . Examination. 



Section 4 — Home Nursing. 

Lesson 

1. Qualifications of a good nurse. Making an invalid's bed. 

Changing the sheets. Bed-rests. 

2. Ventilation of the sick room. Arrangement of the furni- 

ture. Temperature of the room. How to make up the 
fire quietly. 

3. Bed sores : their prevention and their cure. Washing the 

patient. Changing linen. 

4. Treatment for fainting. Poisons : treatment until Doctor 

arrives. Some sick-room dishes. Bandaging. 

5. Treatment after drowning to restore breathing. Some 

sick-room dishes. Bandaging. 

6. Infants' complaints requiring urgent treatment : Croup, 

Convulsions, Diarrhoea, Constipation. Preparing infants' 
food. Bandaging. 



CHAP. XII.] The Teaching of Dojuestic Economy. 341 

Lesson 
7. Infectious diseases : isolation and general treatment. 
Practical housework. 
Revision of common ailments and their remedies. 

Junior stage — Section 3, lessons 8 — 10. 
Making gargles, poultices and fomentations. 
Examination. 



Section 5 — Housewifery. 
Lesson 

1. General structure of the human body. 

2. Structure and care of the teeth, skin and hair. 

3. Circulation and respiration. Importance of ventilation. 

4. Digestion and assimilation. Advantages of a mixed diet. 

5. Fresh air and sunshine. AVholesome food. Personal 

cleanliness. 

6. Clothing : its uses and abuses. Clothing and occupation. 

Suitable clothing for infants, children and adults. 

7. Work and exercise, rest and recreation. Temperance. 

Summary of the laws of health. 

8. Thrift. Income and expenditure. Portioning out stated 

incomes. Keeping accounts. 

9. Savings banks. Building societies. Clubs. 

10. Homes and home makers. Formation of habits. Cha- 

racter building. The influence of family life on nationa 
life. Revision. 

11. Examination. 



INDEX. 



Accounts 199 
Acids 185, 220 
Aerated waters 264 
Afferent nerves 5 
Air 22, 42, 168 
Airing 307, 308 
Albumens 68, 73, 99 
Albunioses 68, 73, 99 
Alcohol 265, 266 
Alcoholic beverages 265 
Alkalies 185, 216, 217 
Allspice 258 
Almonds 115, 259 
Ammonia 51, 56, 217 
Amoeba 3, 53, 133 
Angelica 115 
Antiseptics 18, 139 
Apples 106, 255 
Arteries 151, 188 
Artichokes 108, 249, 252 
Asparagus 108, 251, 252 
Aspect 164 
Attention 279 



Bacon 234 

Bacteria 8, 16, 35, 5I' 60, 74, 82, 

92, 132, 148, 154 
Baking 141, 270, 292, 294 
Baking powder 261, 262 
Bananas 106, 109, 256 
Barley-water 244, 248 
Baths 188 



Bath-room 174 

Bay leaves 258 

Beans 105, 254 

Bed 182 

Bed-sores 183 

Bed -room 164, 207 

Beef 88, 94, 230, 231 

Beef- tea 276, 277 

Beer 266, 267 

Beetroot 107, 250 

Benefit societies 196, 197 

Berries 255 

Bites 191 

Blackboard 279, 280 

Blankets 208, 224 

Bleeding 188, 189 

Blood 93 

Blue 218 

Boiling 140, 270, 271, 294, 295, 296 

Boots 214 

Borax 218 

Brain 11 1 

Braising 14 1, 274, 275 

Bran 226 

Brandy 268 

Breathing 33, 35, 39. 43 

Bricks 164 

Broiling 274 

Bruises 185 

Burgundy 268 

Burns 243 

Butter 112 

Buttermilk 243 



344 



Index. 



Cabbage no, iiQ, 257 

Caffeine 263 

Calico 305, 306, 307 

Capers 257 

Capillaries 189 

Carbohydrates 66, 68, 73, 94, 10 1 

Carbolic 25, 27, 47, 51, 56, 62 

Cardamoms 258 

Carpets 208 

Carrots 107, 250 

Casein 68, 91, 243 

Celery 108, 119, 251 

Cells 4, II 

Cellulose 68, 81, 133, 140 

Cereals 98, 104, 109, 119, 247 

Charcoal 222 

Champagne 268 

Cheese 92, 94, 243 

Cheques 198 

Cherries 106, 256 

Chervil 115 

Chestnuts 105, no, 257 

Chewing 127 

Chickens 238 

Chicory 263 

Chives 250 

Chloride of lime 187 

Chocolate 264 

Cinnamon 258 

Claret 268 

Clothes 38, 149, 216, 224, 307, 308 

Clothing 304, 306, 307, 309 

Cocoa 264 

Cocoanut 115 

Coffee 263, 264 

Cook 191, 203, 204 

Cold meat 275 

Condensed milk 139 

Condiments 145, 257 

Condy's fluid 182 

Construction 164 

Convalescence 191 

Convulsions 187 

Cotton 305 

Cream 242, 243 

Cream of tartar 261 

Cucumbers 106, 253 

Curd 91 

Curry powder 258 

Custard powder 246 



Dates 106, 109, 256 
Dextrin 68, 104 
Diet 75, 78, 84, 86, 93 
Discount 198 
Disinfectants 179, 187 
Disinfecting 227 
Dislocation 190 
Doctor 184, 185, 186 
Dolly tub 221 
Doors 165, 209, 210 
Drains 173, 174, 178, 179 
Dripping 112 
Ducks 238 
Dust 32, 42, 53 

Ear 185 

Education 278 

Economy 192 

Efferent nerves 5 

Eggs 92, 129, 245, 246 

Egg yolk in 

Electric light 171 

Emetics 185, 186 

Emulsion 70, 71, 112, 127, 130 

Endive 108 

Excitants 186 

Eye 185 

Fats 67, 69, 74, 94, nr, 114, 134, 

140 
Fatty foods 301, 302, 303, 304 
Fennel 115 

Fermentation 265, 267 
Fermented liquors 265 
Ferments 138 
Fever 186, 187 
Figs 106, 109, 256 
Filtration 175 
Fire 178 

Fire-irons 208, 209 
Fish 90, 94, 240, 241 
Flageolets 253 
Flannel 223, 306 
Floors 165, 211 
Flour 100, 103, 125, 129 
Flues 177 
Food 65, 86, 127, 179, 180, 191, 

192, 193, 205, 229, 257 
Foods (lessons on) 286, 287, 288, 

289, 298, 299 



htdex. 



345 



Foodstuffs d^,, 75, 126 
Fractures 190 
Fresh air 42 
Fruit 57, 255 
Frying 272, 273, 274 
Frying (lessons on) 297, 298 
Fungi 99 
Furnishing 180 
Furniture 40, 43 
Furniture polish 2 1 1 



Game 90, 119, 239 

Gallery 2»o 

Garlic 250 

Gas 170 

Gas stoves 177, 284 

Gastric juice 126, 128, 130 

Geese 238 

Gelatine 81, 88, 129, 134, 141 

Gherkins 253 

Gin 268 

Ginger 258 

Globe artichokes 252 

Globulins 68, 89, 99 

Glycogen loi 

Good conductors 306, 309 

Grapes 105, 256 

Grates 208 

Grease 178, 210 

Green plants 9 

Green vegetables 251 

Grilling 142, 274 

Grilling (lessons on) 292, 293, 294 

Groats 248 

Guinea-fowls 238 



Haemorrhage 188 

Hard water 49, 56 

Haricots 253 

Hearths 209 

Heating 209 

Herbs 259 

House 163 

Household management in Elemen- 
tary Schools 327, 328, 329 

Household management, Syllabus 
of 329 

Housekeeping 192, 193 



Housemaid 194, 204, 205, 206 
House refuse 174 
Housewifery, 163 

Iceland moss 254 

Illustration 279, 280 

Inattention 279, 280 

Income 193, 194 

Income-tax 197 

Infection 40, 148, 160 

Inoculation 19 

Inorganic matter 33, 49, 55 

Insurance 195 

Irish moss 254 

Iron 120, 122 

Ironing 222 

Irons 222 

Irritants 186 

Kitchen 176 
Knives 213 
Kola 264 
Koumiss 131 

Lace 225, 226 

Lake-water 46, 51, 61, 6}^ 

Lamb 235, 236 

Lamps, 171 

Lard 112 

Larder 164, 179, 180 

Laundry 194, 205, 214 

Lead 50, 57 

Lemons 119, 256, 259 

Lentils 254 

Lessons (Notes of) 281, 282, 286, 

292, 293, 294—327 
Lettuce 252 
Lighting 169, 170 
Lime 49, 56, 120, 121 
Linoleum 208 
Linseed 116 
Liver 90, 111 

Living substance 3, 6},, 126 
Louvre 169 
Lungs 33, 35, 43 

Mace 258 
Machinery 220, 221 



346 



Index 



Maize 248 

Malted foods 192 

Malting 103 

Maltose 266 

Marble 211 

Marrows 106 

Marsala 268 

Meat 229, 236, 237 

Medlars 255 

Melons 106 

Micro-organisms 20 

Milk 68, 70, loi, 102, 114, 119, 

130, 131, 241, 242, 243, 244 
Morels 254 
Moths 207 
Mould 20, 34 
Muscular tone 153 
Mushrooms 254 
Mustard 108, 257 
Mutton 232, 234 

Narcotics 186 

Nerves 80, in 

Nervous system 4, 143 

Nitrates 52, 58 

Nitrites 52, 58 

Nitrogen 47, 75 

Nitrous oxide 31 

Notes of lessons 281, 282, 286—327 

Nutmegs 258 

Nuts 119, 124 

Oats 104, 116, 124, 248 

Oils 117, 259, 260 

Oil stoves 171, 177 

Olive oil 115 

Onions 97, 108 

Oranges 256 

Order 285 

Organic matter 33, 34, 38, 50, y^, 

58, 59 
Organism 3 

Oxygen 22, 25, 43, 46 
Oysters 90, 94 

Pancreas 90 
Paraffin 171, 219, 220 
Parasites 10 
Parsnips, 97, 250 



Pathogenic bacteria 16, ^^, 54, 60 

Peaches 106 

Pears 106, 255 

Peas 99, 105, 119, 253 

Pectine 83, 106 

Peptonising 192 

Pheasants 239 

Phosphorus 122 

Pictures 209 

Pigeons 239 

Plants 8 

Plate 205, 212 

Plums 106 

Polenta 257 

Polish 211 

Polishing 225 

Pork 233, 234 

Port 268 

Potash 217 

Potatoes 97, 107, 119, 249 

Poultry 90, 237 

Preparation 281 

Preserving 256 

Principles 269, 270, 271, 272 

Proteids 229 

Protene 92 

Protoplasm 66, 78 

Pulse 98, 105, 109, 119, 253 

Quantities 195 
Questions 280, 281 
Quince 255 

Rabbits 238 

Rain water 46, 51, 59, 61 

Ranges 176, 177, 178, 282 

Refuse (house) 174 

Registry offices 200 

Remedies 184 

Reserve materials 97 

Revalenta Arabica 254 

Rhubarb 108 

Rice 248 

Roasting 141, 269 

Roasting (lessons on) 292, 293, 294 

Roof 164 

Rooms 282 

Roots 249, 250 

Rum 268 

Rye 247 



Index. 



347 



Salad 252 Suet 1 1 1 

Saline waters 50, 57 Sugar 104, 109 

Saliva 102, 126, 128, 143 Sunlight 41 

Salsify 250 Sweat 38, 156 

Salt 260, 261 Sweeping 210 

Salts 66, 71, 79, 89, 94, r 18, 120,260 Sweet potatoes 

Sand 179 Syllabub 13 r 

Sauer Kraut 251 

Savings-bank 196 

Scalds 184 

Scrubbing 210 

Seakale 251 

Sebaceous glands 37, 156 

Secretion 144, 145 

Seed 97 

Servants 194, 195, 200, 201, 202, 

203, 204, 205 
Sheets 182 
Sherry 268 
Sick-room 181 
Silk 225, 305, 307 
Sink 178, 179 
Skin 34, 43, 156 
Soap 49, 56, 216 
Soap jelly 219 
Soda 217 
Soda-water 264 
Sodium chloride ^o 
Soil 164 
Sorrel 252 
Soup 142 
Spices 258 
Spinach 251 
Spirits 205, 268 
Spore 12, 13, 34 
Spring cleaning 207 
Spring water 46, 50, 61 
Stains, 226, 227 
Starch 218, 219 

Starch (lessons on) 299, 300, 301 
Stays 152 
Steaming 271 
Sterilization 18, 132 
Stewing 141, 272 
Stewing (lessons on) 294, 295, 296, 

297 
Stings 191 
Stock 142, 275, 276 
Stone fruit 256 
Stores 179, 180 Wages 194 



=49 



Tables 284 
Tannin 262, 263 
Tartaric acid 261 
Taxes 193 
Tax (income-) 197 
Tea 262, 263 
Teaching 278 
Temperature 163 
Theine 262, 263 
Thermometer 184 
Thrift 192, 193, 195 
Thymus 90 
Tobin's tubes 169 
Toilet \vare 212 
Tomatoes 252 
Tongue 90 
Toxines 58, 62 
Tripe 90, 95, 231 
Tubers 249 
Turkeys 238 
Turnips 108, 250 

Unconsciousness 185 

Urea 65, 67 

Utensils, lessons on laundry 323 

Valves (Sheringham) 169 

Vanilla 259 

Varicose veins 189 

Vascular system 4 

Veal 235, 236 

Veins 151, 189 

Vegetables 246, 247 

Vegetable marrows 252 

Venison 239 

Ventilation 37, 165, 166. 168, 169, 

Ventilation (lessons on) 310 — 323 
Vinegar 259 
Vomiting 148 



348 



Index. 



Walking skirts 154 
Walls 165, 209 
Washing 223 
Washing powders 219 
Water 45, 49, 50, 56, 61, 6(-), 72, 
79, 94, 118, 123, 175, 176, 216 
Water-closet 174 
Water-cress 108 
Wheat 247 
Wheat grain 97, 102 



Whisky 213 

Windows 165, 209, 210 
Woodwork 164, 210 
Wool-sorters' disease 35 

Yeast 20 

Yellow marrow 1 1 1 

Yolk of Q.gg III, 112 

Zinc 213 



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LATIN. 


Ropes 


1/6 


Cicero : 


De Officiis, IIL 


Holden 


2/- 


Horace : 


Odes, IIL 


Gow 


2/- 


Vergil : 


Aeneid, X. 

GREEK. 


Sidgwick 


1/6 


Xenophon : 


Anabasis, IV. 


Pretor 


^h 


Homer : 


Iliad, XXIV. 


Edwards 


2/- 


Euripides : 


Hecuba 

ARITHMETIC. 


Hadley 


2/6 


Arithmetic for 


Schools, in Two Parts 


C. Smith each 


2/- 


7J 


,, Together 


it 


3/6 





4 






Elementary Algebra 


ALGEBRA. 


Ball 


4/6 


Books L— II. 
„ L-IV. 
„ I.-VI. 


EUCLID. 




H. M. Taylor 


1/6 

3/- 
4/- 



TRIGONOMETRY. 

Elementary Treatise Hobson and Jessop 4/6 

Up to and including the Solutions of 

Triangles Loney 5/- 

MEGHANICS. 

Mechanics and Hydrostatics for Beginners Loney 4/6 

STATICS. 

Elements of Statics Loney 4/6 

DYNAMICS. 

Elements of Dynamics Loney 3/6 

ART OF TEACHING. 

Lectures on Teaching Fitch 5/- 

Elementary English Grammar West 2/6 

English Grammar for Beginners „ i/- 



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